There were gasps and – to the intense irritation of supporters – cheers from opponents of assisted dying when the vote was read out in the Commons. After twice voting in favour of the bill, MPs have rejected proposals to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales, bringing the latest effort to change the law to an end. The debate itself was tetchier, more irritable than when Kim Leadbeater introduced a similar bill in 2024.
Then it was the first time MPs had voted on assisted dying in nine years. Since then the Commons has voted on this issue three times and had hours of debate. The sombre, respectful tone from 2024 has become more embittered.
Given the strength of feeling on both sides over such an emotive issue, perhaps that is unsurprising. But on a deeply divided issue, both sides agree on why the result was different. "We always said it would come to turnout and it did," one supporter of the bill text me.
An opponent messaged to say the same. Last time MPs voted on assisted dying in June, 315 were in favour and 291 against. Today, the numbers opposed were similar: 286.
But support for this bill has ebbed away. Just 270 vote for this bill, a fall of 45. So why have fewer MPs backed it, compared to a year ago?
There are a number of reasons why support for assisted dying has dropped off. Some MPs have changed their mind. Janet Daby, the Labour MP for Lewisham East, for example told the Commons that after she previously backed the bill "my conscience was not at peace, and I cannot again, in good conscience, vote for the bill." But in reality those switching their position are a small minority.
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