Gordon Brown says assisted dying should not be legalised

Gordon Brown has said he is against legalising assisted dying, based on his experience of his own daughter’s death.

The former prime minister said the experience of sitting with his “fatally ill” baby daughter, Jennifer, “did not convince me of the case for assisted dying; it convinced me of the value and imperative of good end-of-life care”.

In an article for The Guardian, Mr Brown said that rather than legalising assisted dying, the country should consider setting up a commission on end of life care.

He is the latest senior political figure to come out against The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, put forward by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater.

There has been much debate about the bill since details about how it would work were published last week. Under the plans, a person would need to be terminally ill and have a life expectancy of six months, and would have to take the fatal drugs themselves.

Ms Leadbeater believes her proposed legislation is the “most robust” in the world and contains safeguards she hopes will “reassure” those who are on the fence.

They include that two independent doctors must confirm a patient is eligible for assisted dying and that a High Court judge must give their approval.

However, several cabinet ministers – including Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who would be responsible for the new law – have spoken out against the legislation.

On Monday, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson told Sky News she will vote against the bill, saying she had not “changed her mind” since the issue was last debated in parliament in 2015.

Read more:
Where does the cabinet stand on assisted dying?
Why is assisted dying so controversial and where is it already legal?

Cabinet ministers who have indicated they will vote in favour of the bill include Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary, and Ed Miliband, the former Labour leader and current energy secretary.

A poll out today by YouGov suggests more than seven in 10 people agree with the principle that assisted dying should be legal.

When asked whether “in principle… you think assisted dying should or should not be legal in some form in the UK”, 73% of people said it should be legal, 13% said it should not and 14% said they did not know.