Streeting wrong to share assisted dying concerns, suggests Labour MP behind Bill
The Labour MP leading the campaign to legalise assisted dying has criticised Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, for “very vocally” opposing the move.
Kim Leadbeater said Mr Streeting’s repeated public comments against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill were “quite disappointing and quite upsetting”.
Mr Streeting has said he will vote against the Bill, which is due to be debated in the House of Commons for the first time on Friday Nov 29.
He has also warned that the NHS could not afford to implement assisted dying without making cuts in other service areas. Ministers have been told they “should not take part in the public debate”.
Ms Leadbeater told The House magazine: “The important thing is that this debate happens, and everybody is absolutely entitled to their different views on the issue.
“But I have found it disappointing that some members of the Cabinet have spoken out very vocally on the issue, and others have done as instructed and not expressed their views. So, I’ve found that quite disappointing and quite upsetting. But equally, I’m not the sort of person to stifle debate and have conversations. That’s really, really important.”
The Government is remaining neutral on the issue, with MPs given a free vote, meaning they will not be instructed on which way to cast their ballot.
Simon Case, the Cabinet Secretary, wrote to all ministers in October, telling them: “Though ministers need not resile from previously stated views when directly asked about them, they should exercise discretion and should not take part in the public debate.”
Downing Street would not be drawn on whether Mr Streeting was right to suggest that the proposed law could come at the expense of other NHS services.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said on Thursday: “Ultimately this is a matter for Parliament to decide, and that is why it is going to be a free vote and Parliament will debate the principles and merits of assisted dying and the issues surrounding the Bill.”
Mr Streeting said he will vote against the Bill because of concerns over the state of palliative care in the UK. On Wednesday, he said he had ordered officials at the Department of Health to assess the cost implications for the NHS should the Bill become law.
The Cabinet minister, who is a practising Christian, said: “Now that we’ve seen the Bill published, I’ve asked my department to look at the costs that would be associated with providing a new service to enable assisted dying to go forward.
”I’m very clear that, regardless of my own personal position or my own vote, my department and the whole Government will respect the will of Parliament if people vote for assisted dying.”
Mr Streeting said the NHS would face “choices and trade-offs”, adding that “any new service comes at the expense of other competing pressures and priorities”.
An ally of Mr Streeting told the Politics Home website that he had “approached this issue in a genuine, thoughtful and considerate way, setting out his own view while respecting others’ views”.