An 11th hour hurdle could delay the passing of the island’s Assisted Dying Bill.

The Isle of Man is set to become the first place in the British Isles to give terminally ill adults the right to end their life.

Dr Alex Allinson’s Private Member’s Bill returned to the House of Keys this week when MHKs spent just over an hour debating 26 amendments put forward by the Legislative Council.

A majority of amendments were accepted and one was changed to correct the language used and ensure it is compatible with the rest of the Bill.

But three were not accepted - those relating to residency criteria, the individual not being able to be alone when they die and recording the occupation of the witness to signing of the declaration.

It means that the Bill will now be passed back to LegCo for consideration. If no agreement can be reached, the Keys can seek a conference with the upper chamber, held in private, to see if a consensus can be reached.

If a disagreement cannot be resolved, the island’s Constitution Act allows for legislation to proceed without the backing of LegCo.

A further complication is that there are elections next week to fill four vacancies in the Legislative Council. MLCs will sit again formally on March 11.

‘They will then consider the three amendments not supported and decide whether they want to argue the case, agree new amendments on those points or accept the will of the Keys,’ Dr Allinson said.

‘I will be working with the new Members after next week hopefully to gain consensus. If that is not possible then a conference would be the next best step rather than democratic ping-pong.’

In the Keys this week an adjournment motion from Onchan MHK Julie Edge was not supported.

MLCs had proposed reducing the residency criteria to be eligible for assisted death from five years to one.

The bill as originally drafted cited one year residency but this was to changed to five years following the recommendations of a House of Keys committee.

Dr Allinson said the LegCo amendment was at odds with the need to have 12 months or less left to live.

A second amendment preventing a medical professional overseeing a death from leaving the patient alone at any point during the process was also rejected as ‘unworkable’.

And a requirement proposed by MLCs that a witness include their occupation on the declaration form was also rejected with Douglas East MHK Clare Barber arguing it was ‘unnecessary’.

During the debate, a number of MHKs expressed concern at lack of safeguards and whether the legislation was weaker than that being proposed in the UK.

Glenfaba and Peel MHK Kate Lord-Brennan argued that the Bill was ‘not fit for purpose’ and ‘will come with severe and serious consequences for the Isle of Man’.

Julie Edge agreed, describing it as a ‘very dangerous Bill’, adding: ‘I feel this is a really bad day for the social contract, the Isle of Man and for our people, the most vulnerable in our society.’

Speaker Juan Watterson reminded them that this was not a ‘rehash’ of the third reading debate.

Among the amendments accepted were the need to strengthen safeguards against coercion and duress with the words ‘undue influence’ added, and guidance and training to be provided to assist healthcare professionals recognise behaviours that might amount to coercion.

Dr Allinson said he was grateful for the scrutiny and deliberations of the Legislative Council.