LONDON: UK lawmakers voted in favor of assisted dying for terminally ill people in England and Wales on Friday, taking the emotional and controversial legislation to the next stage of parliamentary scrutiny.
Campaign group Dignity in Dying hailed the result as “a historic step towards greater choice and protection for the dying”, but Christian Concern called it “Black Friday for the vulnerable in this country”.
MPs voted 330 to 275 in the first vote on the issue in the House of Commons for almost a decade.
The result followed an emotionally charged debate that lasted nearly five hours in a packed and hushed chamber, and rival protesters made their voices heard outside parliament.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill now moves to the next stage where lawmakers can propose amendments, a process likely to be marred.
The legislation will then face further votes in the upper house of the Commons and the House of Lords.
The process will likely take months, and if it is finally approved, the law change is expected to be years away. The House of Commons last debated and defeated a euthanasia bill in 2015, but polls show public support for giving terminally ill people the choice to end their lives has shifted in favor. is