𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he will abstain in the next Commons vote on the assisted dying Bill so as not to “unduly influence the debate” in a letter to the Parliamentary Labour Party. Burnham said he has therefore decided it is “most appropriate” for him not to cast a vote on the proposed legislation in England and Wales next month.

Proposed by Labour MP Lauren Edwards the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which ran out of time in Parliament’s last session, is due back in the House of Commons on September 11. The Bill proposes allowing adults in England and Wales with fewer than six months to live to apply for an assisted death subject to the approval of two doctors and an expert panel. The Express’ campaign, Give Us Our Last Rights, launched in 2022 and calls for the Government to legalise assisted dying for terminally ill, mentally competent adults in the UK.

In a letter to the Parliamentary Labour Party, Burnham wrote: “I, of course, have my own personal views on the issue.

“However, I am also clear that this is a matter for Parliament to decide and my role, as the Prime Minister, will be to lead a Government that implements the will of Parliament in this area – whether that is to change the law or not.

“I also do not want to unduly influence the debate as Prime Minister and for every colleague to know it is a genuinely free vote. For these reasons, I have taken the decision that it is most appropriate for me not to vote at second reading.”

Burnham urged ministers to reiterate that the assisted dying Bill is “a question for Parliament, on which the official Government position is to remain neutral”.

In a seperate letter to ministers the Prime Minister said that “we will all bring different life experiences to this debate” and “everyone must be given the space to arrive at their own view”.

He said that “it is vital that those different views are treated with dignity and respect”.

Burnham added: “I want Members across Parliament to be able to reach those conclusions without feeling that the Government is seeking to influence the debate.

“At the despatch box, I ask that Ministers reiterate that this is a question for Parliament, on which the official Government position is to remain neutral, with the same approach taken outside Parliament when dealing with all forms of media, including social media.

“Of course, Ministers do not need to resile from their previously stated view when directly asked about them and can correspond with constituents about their previous position, but they should avoid being part of the public debate, and should not express views about the implications of the Bill for their Department’s responsibilities.

“As you will be aware, this is an exceptional arrangement, which applies only to the question of whether, and how, Parliament should legislate on the issue of assisted dying. Collective responsibility will apply as usual across the rest of Government business, and if Parliament chooses to change the law, it would be Government policy to implement it.”

The previous attempt to legalise assisted dying was passed narrowly by MPs in June 2025. Despite the government holding an officially neutral stance, the then health secretary Wes Streeting stood in opposition.

Mr Burnham, who was not an MP and therefore did not have a vote when the Bill came before the Commons in recent years, said last month that he believes the funding of palliative care needs to be fixed before consideration can be given to legalising assisted dying.

The Prime Minister, who has previously indicated he had changed his view over the years to be in support of the principle of assisted dying, said in July that it is “very challenging” to debate the issue amid gaps in the current offer of care at the end of life.

It has its second reading in the Commons – the first opportunity MPs get to vote on a bill – on September 11.