A Bill of the Scottish Parliament to provide for the lawful provision to terminally ill adults of assistance to voluntarily end their own lives; and for connected purposes.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill was a private members' bill (PMB) which proposed to legalise assisted suicide for terminally ill adults in Scotland. The bill was introduced by Liberal Democrat backbench MSP Liam McArthur in March 2024 after he was chosen first by ballot for PMBs. The political parties in Parliament gave MSPs a free vote on the bill. On the 17 March 2026 the bill failed to pass in a 69 to 57 against vote.[1]
Assisted dying in Scots law might constitute murder, culpable homicide or no offence depending on the nature of the assistance. In 1980, the Scottish branch of the British Voluntary Euthanasia Society (now called Exit) broke off from its original society in order to publish How to Die with Dignity,[2] which became the first publication of its kind in the world.[3]
In a 2012 consultation on the Member's Bill proposed by MSP Margo MacDonald, 64% of the members of the public who choose to give comment on the issue rejected the proposals. A similar consultation by the Health and Sport Committee in 2014 came to a different conclusion, with 78% of responses by individuals being supportive of the proposals.[4] Nevertheless, in 2015 a majority of MSPs including the first minister Alex Salmond voted against the bill in the Scottish Parliament, defeating it in its first stage.[5]
In February 2019 a group of MSPs, including previous opponent Kezia Dugdale, formed to attempt to reform assisted dying law in the Scottish Parliament.[6]
Dame Esther Rantzen is a high-profile campaigner in support of the Westminster bill.
On 19 December 2023, journalist and television presenter Dame Esther Rantzen, who has terminal lung cancer, said she joined the assisted suicide clinic Dignitas in Switzerland where it is legal and permits foreigners to use the service.[7][8] This led to the leaders of the main political parties represented in the Westminster Parliament to say they would facilitate parliamentary time for a bill.[7]
On 29 February 2024, the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee published a report on assisted dying with chair Steve Brine (Conservative) saying that: "The inquiry on assisted dying and assisted suicide raised the most complex issues that we as a committee have faced, with strong feelings and opinions in the evidence we heard."[9]
Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur introduced the bill.
Summary of the Bill
The bill (prior to committee) proposes to legalise assisted suicide for terminally ill adults aged 16 or older given that they meet these requirements:[10]
Must be a resident of Scotland and be registered with a GP for at least 12 months[11]
Mental capacity to make an informed decision free from coercion[11]
Make two independent declarations about their desire to die, which must be witnessed and signed[13]
Two doctors must be satisfied the person is eligible[13]
Parliamentary procedure
A cross-party working group which supported the legislation, included former Scottish Conservative leader Jackson Carlaw, as well as Scottish Greens co-leaders Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater.[14] The bill was voted down on 17 March 2026 in the Stage Three of the Parliamentary procedure.[1][15]
Stage One: general principles
The bill received its Stage One debate on the 13 May 2025.[16] It was approved at Stage One by a majority of 70 votes to 56 for the bill, and 1 abstention, and 1 not voting.[17][15] There was a vacancy in the parliament due to the recent death of Christina McKelvie (who had voted against a previous Assisted Dying bill).
Stage Two: changes to the Bill
The bill received its Stage Two debate on the 30 October 2025. It was approved at Stage Two by a majority of 70 votes to 31 for the bill, and 11 abstentions, and 17 not voting.[15]
Stage Three: the bill's final changes and final vote
The bill received its Stage Three debate on the 17 March 2026. It was voted down at Stage Three on the bill's final vote with 57 for, 69 against, 1 abstained and 2 did not vote.[1][15] 12 MSPs who previously for the bill in it's first vote in Stage One of the Parliamentary procedure, voted against the bill in Stage Three's vote.[18] This included 5 Conservative, 4 SNP and 3 Labour members.
The majority of Scottish National Party (SNP) and Liberal Democrats MSPs voted for the bill, as did all Scottish Greens MSPs.[19] On the other hand, the majority of Scottish Conservatives and Scottish Labour MSPs voted against the bill, as did the sole Reform UK MSP.[19]
Anas Sarwar, leader of Scottish Labour declared that he would not support the bill.[26] Labour MSPs were given a free vote on the bill.[27] Labour MSP Pam Duncan-Glancy, the first permanent wheelchair user to be elected to Holyrood, was a major opponent of the bill.[10]
Ash Regan, the sole Alba MSP, said she would vote against the bill.[31]
Public opinion
In March 2024, a nationwide poll of over 10,000 people from across England, Scotland and Wales was commissioned by Dignity in Dying (a pro-assisted suicide group), found that 75 per cent of respondents supported legalising assisted suicide versus 14 per cent who opposed. Muslims were the only demographic in which the majority opposed.[32] Another poll by Ipsos found that 66 per cent of people supported allowing a doctor to assist a terminally ill patient to end their life, with 16 per cent opposing. The polls were condemned by opponents of assisted suicide, who said they do not reflect people’s considered opinions when they are given more detailed information.[7] Doctors in the UK are evenly split on assisted dying, based on their experiences working within the health system.[33] Similarly, according to the Royal College of Psychiatrists, psychiatrists are evenly split, with opposition to the proposed Westminster bill based on the belief that it would not provide sufficient safeguards.[34]
↑Mair, G.B.; Scottish Exit (Edinburgh, Scotland) (1980). How to Die with Dignity. Scottish Exit. Archived from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
↑McDougall, Jennifer Fecio; Martha Gorman (2008). Contemporary World Issues: Euthanasia. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. pp.70–73.
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