Leadbeater Bill ‘flying blind’ to consequences for Wales

Little thought has been given to the implications of Kim Leadbeater’s assisted suicide Bill for Wales, a law expert has warned.

Emyr Lewis, Emeritus Professor of Law at Aberystwyth University, said the backbencher’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill could be imposed on Wales without Senedd approval, and had been drafted without considering its effect on Welsh society.

In October, members of the Welsh Parliament refused to endorse a motion calling for assisted suicide by 26 votes to 19, while there were nine abstentions.

‘Profound effect’

Prof Lewis said the Leadbeater Bill “would most likely have a profound effect on matters which are clearly within the Senedd’s legislative competence”, such as the provision of health and social services.

Had it been a Government Bill, rather than a Private Member’s one, he pointed out, “issues relating to devolved matters” would have been addressed before it was published.

But he explained that while there have been some discussions between the UK and Welsh governments about the Bill, “those promoting the Bill have to a large extent been flying blind to the Wales-specific consequences of their proposed legislation”.

Senedd ignored

Prof Lewis said the October vote was “something which those who support the Bill cannot ignore, for both practical and, I suggest, constitutional reasons”.

“How can it be constitutionally appropriate for the UK Parliament to pass such a Bill for Wales, when the Senedd has indicated its opposition by democratic vote after a thorough debate?

“The vote was against ‘the principles of assisted dying’, not only about how the NHS in Wales might be affected. It was a decision which the majority of the Senedd made about those principles, having reflected on the moral, religious and cultural issues raised.”

Democracy at risk

He concluded: “This note takes no particular side in the debate on the ethical issues involved in the Bill.

“It is intended only to suggest that devolution is more than just about who gets to spend how much money in Wales and on what.

“It is also about values, and how people in Wales shape society here to reflect those values, through democratic processes, or risk having it shaped for them.”

Cross-party opposition

Last year, First Minister Eluned Morgan and Health Minister Jeremy Miles both voted against the motion on assisted suicide, along with a further nine of their Welsh Labour colleagues.

Miles said a change in the law on assisted suicide would have “huge ramifications for Wales”, with far-reaching implications “for the health service and end-of-life care services”.

Conservative MS Darren Millar also voted against, telling the Senedd: “Legalising assisted suicide would send a clear message that some lives are not worth living”.

Similarly opposing the motion, Plaid Cymru’s Delyth Jewell commented: “My fear with this motion – well, my terror, really – is not so much with how it will begin as with how it will end.”