Assisted dying proposal passes first stage in Scotland

The Scottish parliament has voted to consider a bill to allow assisted dying for terminally ill people for the first time, after a prolonged debate by MSPs.Holyrood decided by 70 votes to 56 to back the bill, in a free vote that followed months of pre-legislative scrutiny by a cross-party committee and comes days before MPs at Westminster vote on passing similar legislation for England and Wales.Liam McArthur, a Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP, said too many dying people faced “horrendous choices and bad deaths”, including unregulated suicides or prolonged trauma because they were denied the right to an assisted death.In an emotional opening speech, McArthur said voting to block the bill at this early stage, before it is fully considered, would deny choice to terminally ill people, and prevent Holyrood passing a measured and compassionate law.He said more than 300 million people worldwide lived in countries where assisted dying was legal and working fairly, while closer to home the Isle of Man had passed assisted dying laws and Jersey was close to doing so

Give terminally ill people choice in how they die, MSP urges Scottish parliament

Scottish politicians have been urged to show terminally ill people compassion and choice in how they die as they began to debate a new law to permit assisted dying.Liam McArthur, a Scottish Liberal Democrat MP, said too many dying people faced “horrendous choices and bad deaths”, including unregulated suicides or prolonged trauma because they were denied the right to an assisted death.The Scottish parliament is preparing for what may be a knife-edge vote later on Tuesday on whether to start scrutinising an assisted dying bill proposed by McArthur, days before MPs at Westminster vote on passing similar legislation for England and Wales.In an emotional opening speech to MSPs, McArthur said voting to block the bill at this early stage, before it is fully considered, would deny choice to the terminally ill, and prevent Holyrood passing a measured and compassionate law.He said more than 300 million people worldwide lived in countries where assisted dying was legal and working fairly, while closer to home the Isle of Man had passed assisted dying laws and Jersey was close to doing so

Kim Leadbeater urges MPs to back palliative care amendment to assisted dying bill

Kim Leadbeater has urged MPs to back an amendment to the assisted dying bill which would commission a new assessment on the state of palliative care, a move first proposed by the bill’s opponents.In a gesture to MPs who are voting against the bill, the MP sponsoring it said that she understood the concern about the quality of care for terminally ill people and said she believed that improving palliative services should not be in competition with assisted dying.Leadbeater announced her backing for the amendment – which has not yet been chosen by the speaker – after a meeting with the chief executive of Marie Curie. The amendment, which has been proposed for the next reading of the bill this Friday, is authored by the Lib Dem MP Munira Wilson and 21 others who have previously voted against it.It comes amid a race by both sides to persuade MPs to change their mind on the bill – which passed by a majority of 55 in November, and on which MPs have a free vote

Share your experience of coming off weight-loss jabs

With weight-loss jabs popular among people trying to lose weight and advised treatment time using drugs such as Wegovy limited to two years, we are interested in finding out more about people’s experiences after coming off weight-loss jabs.What did you think of the results? Did the weight stay off, and did your relationship with food, or your body, change?You can tell us what it was like when you stopped using weight-loss jabs by filling in the form below.Please include as much detail as possiblePlease note, the maximum file size is 5.7 MB.Please note, the maximum file size is 5

Political parties banned from Pride events after UK gender ruling

The UK’s largest Pride organisers have suspended political party participation in their events in “unequivocal solidarity” with the transgender community.In a joint statement, the organisers of Pride events in Birmingham, Brighton, London and Manchester said the move was a “direct call for accountability and a refusal to platform those who have not protected our rights” after the UK supreme court ruling last month.The highest court in the UK ruled that the terms “woman” and “sex” in the Equality Act 2010 refer only to a biological woman and to biological sex. Five judges ruled unanimously that the legal definition of a woman in the act did not include transgender women who hold gender recognition certificates.The UK government said the ruling brought “clarity and confidence” for women and those who run hospitals, sports clubs and women’s refuges

Protests planned as Scottish parliament holds free vote on assisted dying bill

Opponents of proposals to legalise assisted dying in Scotland have warned it is ethically wrong to allow the state to help someone take their own life.Campaigners against assisted dying, including the Silent Witness actor Liz Carr, are staging demonstrations outside the Scottish parliament on Tuesday, hours before MSPs hold a free vote on new legalisation proposals.Pam Duncan-Glancy, Scottish Labour education spokesperson and one of Holyrood’s few disabled MSPs, said it was a mistake to see this issue as one about choice and personal autonomy. It had far-reaching consequences, she added.She opposed the bill because “we are legislating for the state to assist someone to take their own life, and in almost every other circumstance we want the state to legislate for people to live and live well”