Isle of Man first parliament in British Isles to pass assisted dying legislation
The upper chamber of the island’s parliament has sent the Bill for royal assent and an assisted dying service could potentially be in place by 2027.
Terminally ill people on the Isle of Man will be given “autonomy and choice” at the end of their lives, a GP and politician said as his Assisted Dying Bill took its final step towards becoming law.
The island is likely to become the first part of the British Isles to legalise assisted dying, after its proposed legislation was voted through by the parliament’s upper chamber.
Members of what is known as its legislative council approved a final reading of the Assisted Dying Bill on Tuesday.
The Bill will now be put forward for royal assent, at which point it will become law.
Dr Alex Allinson, the member of the House of Keys (MHK) who introduced the private member’s bill in 2022, said he is hopeful it can become law later this year and that an assisted dying service could be in place by 2027.
The GP said he had “met many patients who have wanted this option” and described it as a privilege to have been able to bring the Bill forward.
He told the PA news agency: “It has been a long process, but it was something that, when I went into politics, I was committed to try to advance.
“I’m very grateful to be in the privileged position of being able to bring this legislation through. People have been trying on the Isle of Man for the last 20 years to provide dignity and autonomy for those who are facing an imminent death.
“And I see this as a culmination of the efforts of many members of our community to provide for assisted dying for people on the Isle of Man.”
As it stands, the Isle of Man Bill is only for adults resident on the island for five years who have a terminal illness with a life expectancy of no more than 12 months, and who have a settled intention to end their life.
Doctors are free to choose whether they want to opt-in to providing the service, following a previous request from the British Medical Association (BMA) that this should be a choice.
Campaigners opposed to a change in the law have voiced concerns that legalising assisted dying could put pressure on vulnerable people to end their lives for fear of being a burden on others, and argue that the disabled, elderly, sick or depressed could be especially at risk.
But Dr Allinson said while he understands and respects the viewpoints of those opposed to legalisation, the Bill had been drafted through “a very careful process”, with expert evidence taken into account throughout.
He added that the implementation of the law “will involve more consultation, more guidelines, more safeguards and more parliamentary debates in terms of the underlying regulations and secondary legislation”.
He added: “This is legislation probably that will only be used by a very small number of people but for those people it’s a very important step forward, in terms of autonomy and choice at the end of your life.”
While Vicky Christian, chairwoman of My Death, My Decision Isle of Man described it as a “historic day”, Care Not Killing chief executive Dr Gordon Macdonald branded it a “very sad day for islanders”.
James Mildred from the Christian Action Research and Education (Care) organisation, which is opposed to assisted dying, said: “This deeply sad step turns the Isle of Man’s long-standing approach to suicide on its head.
“Under this legislation, the equal value of every citizen living on the island will no longer be affirmed.”
He added that the “cultural change assisted suicide engenders is a negative one”.
Meanwhile, a committee of MPs at Westminster are nearing the end of their scrutiny of a Bill to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales.
Various amendments are being considered to the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, including expert panels to decide on applications after High Court judge scrutiny was dropped from the proposed legislation.
The Bill is expected to return to the House of Commons, possibly towards the end of April or in May, for further debate and another vote by all MPs.
Jersey’s parliament is expected to debate a draft law for an assisted dying service on the island for terminally ill people later this year.
With a likely 18-month implementation period if a law is approved, the earliest it could come into effect would be summer 2027.
Separately, a vote is expected on the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill in the coming weeks at Holyrood.
