Speeches by Leadbeater.

“I am going to finish, if I may, because other people want to speak. Amendment 14, which was tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Bradford West (Naz Shah)—another outstanding member of the Committee—states: “A person who would not otherwise meet the requirements of subsection (1) shall not be considered to meet those…”

“The hon. Gentleman makes an important point. The amendment is not specifically about eating disorders; there is a broader context. I will come to that later. It is with that experience in mind—my own personal experience and having spoken to many colleagues on this issue—that I say now, as I said in Committee, that unde…”

“I will take one final intervention.”

“I thank my hon. Friend for her passionate contribution, but this is exactly how we make law. We take evidence and have discussions—[Interruption.]”

“I thank the hon. Gentleman for that point. The eligibility criteria in this Bill are very different from those in the jurisdictions he mentions—people with mental health conditions are not eligible for assisted dying under the provisions of this Bill.”

“I will just finish this point, because it is very important. I acknowledge the concerns that colleagues have expressed around this issue, and I believe they are the motivation behind amendment 14. As I have set out, I think that risk is negligible. I have taken advice, and there is some concern that clinicians might ha…”

“I am going to leave it there for now, if I may. I am conscious that many colleagues wish to speak in this important debate, and I am keen to hear their contributions, so I will conclude my remarks there. I thank colleagues for listening, and I hope they are able to support the amendments in my name today in the interes…”

“Is my right hon. Friend reassured by the fact that the Bill creates a criminal offence of coercion and pressure, which does not exist at the moment? No one is checking for coercion when victims of domestic abuse or others take their own lives under desperate circumstances.”

“Will my hon. Friend give way?”

“This is not about eligibility; it is about the doctor’s change of circumstances, rather than the patient’s. If the doctor decides that the person is not eligible, they will reject the application. They would record that in the patient’s records, so it would be transparent.”

“I will make some progress, if I may. This is essentially about providing flexibility for doctors while ensuring continuity of care for patients, and I hope colleagues can support new clause 11.”

“Q6. Will the Prime Minister join me in thanking colleagues from across the House and the excellent Clerks and staff who have spent the last few months working on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill Committee? Does he agree that if the law is to change on assisted dying, it is extremely important to implement t…”

“Amendment 382 and the consequential amendments provide for monitoring, investigation and reporting functions under clause 34 to be carried out by the voluntary assisted dying commissioner. The commissioner will submit an annual report to the appropriate national authority—Parliament or the Senedd—on the operation of th…”

“I thought the hon. Gentleman was quite keen on a judge, but now maybe less so. I hope he is reassured by amendment 455, which requires the commissioner to consult the chief medical officer. That shows really clear intent for the post to have judicial and medical expertise and oversight.”

“My hon. Friend makes a really important point, which I will come to in due course, but the thing that we need to analyse is the operation of the Bill. That will not start with the passing of the Bill; it will start with its commencement. It is important that we join the dots between the relevant clauses.”

“I will speak briefly to this clause, because some of what I say will be covered in our debate on other clauses. The title of the clause is “Review of this Act”, so it is important to be clear about what we are reviewing. I am sure members of the Committee agree that it is the operation of the Act that needs to be consi…”

“Amendments 491 and 492 would expand the scope of the report that the Secretary of State must prepare at the end of the initial five-year period to include an assessment of the availability, quality and distribution of appropriate services by including care services and end-of-life care. It is not clear what “care servi…”

“I will speak to my new clause 40 and my amendment 546. The purpose of new clause 40 is to establish a requirement for regular reports on the implementation of the Act until all its provisions are fully implemented. This will ensure continuous oversight and transparency regarding the progress of the Act’s implementation…”

“It is right that there are some exclusions for witnesses and proxies, as set out in the Bill, but although I have no doubt that amendment 454 comes from a good place, it seems both excessive and impractical to conduct a capacity assessment on witnesses and proxies. They are not the patient who is seeking assistance und…”

“I beg to move amendment 223, in clause 39, page 23, line 4, after “purposes” insert “, and (b) incidental, consequential, transitional or saving provision.” This is a standard power for regulations to include the power to make incidental, consequential, transitional or saving provision.”