See how your MP voted in historic assisted dying bill for terminally ill

MPs voted today to legalise assisted dying, after a five-hour House of Commons debate.

The vote to approve the Private Member's Bill, put forward by Kim Leadbeater, the MP for Spen Valley, was approved on its second reading by 330 votes to 275. The Bill will now be examined by parliamentary committees.

Before the vote, many North East MPs said they had carefully considered the issue, by writing open letters to their constituents and by joining in the long debate in the House of Commons.

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READ MORE: How every North East MP voted in historic assisted dying debate

Political parties made the issue a free vote, meaning MPs were not told by their party how to vote and instead MPs were able to vote based on their own beliefs.

MPs in the North East were split, like many in other parts of the country, some choosing to back the Bill, with others choosing to vote against it.

Joe Morris, Labour MP for Hexham, said: "It has always been my view that people should have control over their own bodies and a choice in how long they are willing to live in pain. This bill is about exactly that, offering choice and providing dignity for those whom palliative care can no longer meet the needs of."

Chi Onwurah, Labour MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West, wrote a letter announcing she would be voting against the bill. "My mother was an active member of the Voluntary Euthanasia Society, now called Dignity in Dying, in the 1980s. She was disabled and often in significant pain.

"I respected her desire to have the right to end her life as she chose I assumed that when the matter came before Parliament, I would support assisted dying, but I also knew I owed it to myself and my constituents to consider the matter thoroughly before deciding."

She outlined her three reasons for voting against the Bill, writing the Bill is flawed, there has not been enough parliamentary and public debate and instigating state support for the taking of life should not be done through a Private Member's Bill.

You can find out how your MP voted below.