Engaging on assisted dying proposals

Find out how the RCPsych is engaging with Westminster, the Senedd, Holyrood and the States Assembly on different assisted dying/assisted suicide proposals this autumn.

Over the past three years, the College has consistently engaged with legislators on assisted dying/assisted suicide in parliaments across the UK1 and Crown Dependencies.

While we do not take a position on the principle of the matter nor on whether parliaments should or should not pass legislation to introduce an assisted dying/assisted suicide service, we are focused on sharing our expert clinical insight in each relevant jurisdiction to ensure, as much as possible, that:

  • any proposal that becomes law has strong safeguards for people with mental illnesses, intellectual disabilities, neurodevelopmental conditions and neuropsychiatric conditions; and
  • aligns with the role and core duties of psychiatrists and other doctors.

Westminster (England)

Now that the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill for England and Wales is before the House of Lords, we are highlighting aspects of it that should be improved to make it safer for people with mental health need.

Last month, we sent a written briefing to all Peers in the House of Lords, setting out four fundamentals of assessment which we believe should be foundational to any proposed assisted dying/assisted suicide legislation for England and Wales. This document looks specifically at parts of the Bill for England and Wales that are not consistent with these fundamentals and provides ten recommendations.

We also provided both written evidence and oral evidence to the House of Lords Bill Committee about the proposed Panel and other parts of the Bill. Based on the evidence it received over the past month, this Committee has since published its report to inform the next stage in the House of Lords, where Peers will debate the Bill, propose and vote on amendments to it.

Senedd (Wales)

In October, RCPsych in Wales hosted its second drop-in event at the Senedd to share its concerns about the Bill with Senedd Members, ahead of a debate and vote on whether to grant legislative consent in due course. Both events were sponsored by the Deputy Llywydd of the Senedd, David Rees MS. Our latest briefing is available in English and Cymraeg.

The Health and Social Care Committee and the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee have recently published reports following scrutiny of the Bill, with reference made to RCPsych Wales’ written evidence. We welcome the Committees’ findings and endorse the recommendations made to the Welsh Government. A response is expected later this month.

Holyrood (Scotland)

The RCPsych in Scotland (RCPsychiS) is devolved within the College and has carried out an entirely separate process of surveying members to come to its position on the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill. This has taken place in parallel to the engagement of members in England and in Wales regarding the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill before Westminster.

The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill is now at Stage 2, with 287 proposed amendments now being debated and voted on by the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee over four sessions.

After previously providing both written evidence and oral evidence to the Committee, as well as briefings to all MSPs, the RCPsychiS has submitted six amendments through Jackie Baillie MSP, Deputy Leader and Spokesperson on Health and Social Care for Scottish Labour. The amendments focus on safeguards around mental disorder, capacity assessments, and oversight. These include clarifying that mental illness alone does not qualify as a terminal condition, creating a central register of psychiatrists for capacity assessments, and enabling second psychiatric opinions in complex cases.

Please find here a copy of the marshalled list of amendments, alongside the groupings at Stage 2.

In the first Committee session, Liam McArthur MSP’s amendment 24, under which people are not to be considered eligible for AS/AD on the basis of disability or mental disorder alone, passed.

RCPsychiS amendments around the central register and oversight will be debated and voted on in forthcoming Committee meetings.

States Assembly (Jersey)

This month, we submitted evidence to the States Assembly’s Assisted Dying Review Panel in Jersey, to assist in its review into proposed assisted dying legislation.

Our submission set out four fundamentals of assessment which we believe should be foundational to any proposed assisted dying/assisted suicide legislation for Jersey.

Notes

  1. Assisted dying/assisted suicide has not been formally discussed within the Northern Ireland Assembly as of November 2025. The RCPsych in Northern Ireland has a local assisted dying/assisted suicide group which contributes to the College’s UK-wide work on this issue.