Why have efforts to bring in assisted dying law been thwarted?

"The bill then went to the House of Lords but a small number of opponents of the legislation have laid down so many amendments that it will not be voted on in time to make it through the current parliamentary session that ends in May. There are less than six days left for debate."

"The current bill's backers, Leadbeater and Lord Falconer, have taken advice on forcing through the bill next time using an archaic parliamentary procedure if it continues to be blocked by the Lords. The high stakes move described by some backers as the nuclear option would be the first time the 1911 Parliament Act has been invoked for a private member's bill."

"They have said they have extensive legal and constitutional advice that proves they can force peers to vote on the bill, unamended, in the next session of parliament. Opponents of the bill in the House of Lords have felt emboldened to frustrate the passage of the bill because it was not sponsored by the government."

Backbench MP Kim Leadbeater proposed legislation permitting assisted dying for terminally ill people with less than six months to live. The bill passed the House of Commons with a free vote but faced obstruction in the House of Lords, where opponents introduced numerous amendments preventing timely debate. With fewer than six days remaining and limited parliamentary sitting Fridays available, the government declined to extend the session or allocate additional time. Supporters plan to reintroduce the bill in the next parliamentary session and may invoke the 1911 Parliament Act—described as the nuclear option—to force an unamended vote, marking the first time this archaic procedure would be used for a private member's bill.

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