Peers clash with Esther Rantzen over plans to delay and change assisted dying bill
Peers challenge Esther Rantzen over assisted dying bill comments
- TV personality Dame Esther Rantzen urged the House of Lords not to obstruct Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying legislation, which recently passed the House of Commons.
- Rantzen, who has a terminal cancer diagnosis, argued that the Lords' role is to scrutinise and question, not to oppose laws passed by the elected Commons.
- Senior Tory peer Lord Stewart Jackson countered, stating that the House of Lords is constitutionally entitled to amend or delay bills, especially those not in manifestos or poorly drafted.
- Opponent Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson also indicated her intent to propose numerous changes, citing concerns about loopholes regarding learning disabilities, anorexia, and children.
- The assisted dying bill, having passed the Commons by a narrow margin, now faces a lengthy process in the Lords with many proposed amendments, raising concerns it may not pass into law.