THE Bishop of Newcastle, Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, said during the final day of Lords debate on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, that it had been a “moral necessity” to give such a matter adequate scrutiny.

The Bill to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales ran out of time on Friday, nearly 17 months after MPs first voted for it in principle.

“In our context, where questions of life, death, care, and conscience are so closely intertwined, the quality of our scrutiny is not a procedural detail: it is a moral necessity,” said Dr Hartley, who was a member of the Lords Select Committee for the Bill.

“Some may dismiss my contribution as one which is grounded in a faith, but this is as legitimate and significant as any other viewpoint — grounded in faith, belief or none.”

Her experience in committee had shown her that £the more closely we have examined this Bill, the more concerns have come into focus, not fewer,” she said. “For a Bill of this magnitude in terms of societal change, the highest level of scrutiny is imperative.”

MPs supported the Bill in principle by a majority of 55 in November 2024. It then cleared the Commons last June with a majority of 23 (News, 20 June).

Friday marked the 14th and final day of the Committee Stage. More than 1200 amendments were tabled in the Lords, and the Bill did not clear all its stages.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, also speaking in the debate, emphasised the need of investment in palliative care.

“I oppose this Bill in principle, both as a priest and as a nurse; but what is clear is that there are some things that unify us,” she said. “Whether we are in support of this Bill, or we oppose it, we are unified by the fact that what we want is as many people to die in a dignified, pain-free, and compassionate way, with the least possible fear that they can have.”

The Bishop of Southwark, the Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, said in a statement after the debate that Bill had been seen by supporters as falling because of “a cynical ploy” of filibustering by opponents in the Lords. “I can confidently say that there was no cynicism, no ploy, and no talking out. Instead, the Lords did their job with care and diligence.”

It is possible that another attempt to introduce the proposed legislation will be made on 13 May, in the next session of Parliament.