Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: New Clause 2

On 13 June 2025, the House of Commons voted on New Clause 2 to the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill during its Report Stage, the phase at which MPs debate and vote on proposed changes to a bill already considered in committee. The clause concerned devolution, specifically whether the Bill adequately respects the legislative competence of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in relation to assisted dying. The vote passed 259 to 216. The Bill as introduced applies to England and Wales, but the devolution question turns on whether its provisions interact with areas of policy already devolved to the Scottish Parliament, the Senedd and the Northern Ireland Assembly. New Clause 2 sought to add safeguards requiring proper respect for or consent from devolved legislatures before the legislation takes effect in ways that touch devolved matters. Supporters argued this was necessary to honour the devolution settlement in spirit and letter; opponents held that existing provisions already handled the issue adequately, or objected to the specific mechanism proposed. Because the Bill is a private member's bill on a matter of conscience, there was no whipped party line and MPs voted freely. Labour MPs split 122 in favour and 150 against. Conservatives divided 68 in favour and 11 against. Liberal Democrats voted 27 to 34, with more opposing than supporting. All five Democratic Unionist Party MPs voted aye. The Green Party's four MPs all voted no. Simon Hoare, the Conservative Chair of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, spoke in support of the clause, citing his concern that the Bill remained "skeletal" and had not convincingly addressed the devolution settlement. The clause passed with cross-party support that cut across all the major parties.