All-Party Parliamentary Group for Choice at the End of Life
The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Choice at the End of Life is a cross-party group of members of the British Parliament and Peers that supports better end-of-life options, including assisted dying. They believe that, subject to legal safeguards, terminally-ill adult patients should have the option of an assisted death in their final stages of life.[1]
In 2012, this APPG launched a draft a bill for assisted dying[2] which was presented to the House of Lords by Lord Falconer in 2013. The proposed bill was debated in 2014 but ran out of time in the run up to the 2015 general election.[3] A version of the bill tabled by Rob Marris was eventually voted on and defeated in the House of Commons in September 2015.[4]
The APPG is currently chaired by Labour MP Karin Smyth.[5]
It was formerly chaired by Independent MP Nick Boles, who stood down at the 2019 General Election. Boles had faced a potentially life-threatening illness before supporting the campaign.[6] Prior to this, the APPG was chaired by Kit Malthouse MP who called the campaign "the great human rights campaign of our political generation".[7]
The secretariat is provided by the non-profit assisted dying campaign group Dignity in Dying.[8]
APPG Chair and Vice Chairs
Role | Name | Party |
---|---|---|
Chair & Registered Contact | Karin Smyth | Labour |
Vice Chair | Lucy Allan | Conservative |
Vice Chair | Paul Blomfield | Labour |
Vice Chair | Stuart C McDonald | Scottish National Party |
Vice Chair | Christine Jardine | Liberal Democrat |
Vice Chair | Ben Lake | Plaid Cymru |
Vice Chair | Caroline Lucas | Green Party |
Vice Chair | Baroness Meacher | Crossbench |
References
- "About — All-Party Parliamentary Group for Choice at the End of Life". Retrieved 2 August 2018.
- "Draft assisted dying bill consultation comes to an end with almost 500 submissions". Retrieved 6 September 2018.
- "Lord falconers assisted dying bill (2014)". Retrieved 6 September 2018.
- "Assisted dying bill overwhelmingly rejected by MPs". TheGuardian.com. 12 September 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
- "Register Of All-Party Parliamentary Groups [as at 24 February 2020] - Choice at the End of Life". Parliament.uk. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
- "Why I've changed my mind on assisted dying, says NICK BOLES MP". 15 June 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
- "Kit Malthouse to Chair the Choice at the End of Life All Party Party Parliamentary Group". Retrieved 4 August 2018.
- "About — All-Party Parliamentary Group for Choice at the End of Life". Retrieved 2 August 2018.
External links