Scottish parliament debates legislation for assisted dying
The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill, brought forward by Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur, passed the first stage on 13 May 2025. It would allow people with a terminal illness to request medical assistance to end their lives.
Labour MSP Pam Duncan-Glancy, the first permanent wheelchair user to be elected as a MSP, has been among the most vocal critics of the bill and said she feared it could become “easier to access help to die than help to live” and that the bill could “legitimise a view that a life like ours, one of dependence and often pain, is not worth living”.