Sir Ed Davey has said he is “sceptical” of the case for assisted dying in the UK, but agreed MPs should be given a free vote on the issue.
The Liberal Democrat leader, speaking from the party’s annual conference in Brighton, told Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates MPs must “listen to all sides” of a debate and “deeply and carefully” consider the outcome.
He called on members of the Commons “not to rush” a vote, and suggested that a decision shouldn’t be taken before Christmas.
MPs could vote on whether to introduce assisted dying in the UK in the coming months after Downing Street confirmed it would not obstruct a private member’s bill on the subject.
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Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has previously said he would back a change in the law, while the justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, has said she could not support a policy she described as a “dangerous position to be in”.
Sir Ed said he has “quite personal” concerns about the “critical issue” of assisted dying, largely because of his own mother’s battle with bone cancer.
He said: “My concerns are both quite personal. I asked my mother as a teenager when she was dying of bone cancer. And I saw someone with a very painful disease.”
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The Liberal Democrat leader said that through nursing and palliative care “she was able to enjoy life and be with us”.
Separately, Sir Ed has concerns about the pressure legalising assisted dying could place on elderly people.
He said this wouldn’t “necessarily” be from relatives, but “from the inside, internally, which they may not express”.
Sir Ed added: “A situation where healthy people might think they are a burden and then proceed with this, that is a huge worry.”
