Members of the House of Keys have received a committee report on the Assisted Dying Bill 2023.

This Bill, if passed, would afford terminally ill and mentally competent adults the right to, at their request and with specified assistance, end their own life.

Proposed by Onchan MHK Rob Callister, the committee consisted of five MHKs who met to consider and review each of the 14 clauses within the Bill, who would then report back to all honourable members for consideration.

These five chosen members were Alex Allinson, David Ashford, Lawrie Hooper, Michelle Haywood and Rob Callister.

According to the chair of the committee, David Ashford, the committee’s report has now been fully concluded after months of deliberation.

Speaking during Tuesday’s House of Keys sitting, Mr Ashford said: ‘The topic of assisted dying is rightly deserving of sensitive care and consideration.

‘From the outset, the committee members were conscious of the task and trust put in them, that being to consider and address each clause in turn, covering each aspect and arriving at a summary conclusion about the operation of each one.

‘Recognising that the bill had received both its first and second readings, the committee were conscious not to reopen a wider debate on the general principles. We sought to focus squarely on the operation of the clauses themselves and the technical aspects of the Bill.

‘Views were also sought from a range of professional and regulatory bodies and stakeholders, both locally and further afield. This included the Isle of Man Medical Society, the British Medical Association, the General Pharmaceutical Council and the Royal College of Nursing.’

Mr Ashford also said that if the honourable members found this committee and its report to be useful, we ‘might perhaps see more of them in future’.

At the time the committee was proposed by Mr Callister, some MHKs voiced concerns over how much time the committee would add to the legislative process, as well as feeling that all members should be involved in the debating of the various clauses.

However, Chief Minister Alfred Cannan, who was not on the committee, gave praise to the five members and the process of preparing the report. He said: ‘I would like to thank the committee for all their hard work on their consideration of the Bill.

‘I do still think there are many things to consider after hearing the thoughts of honourable members, such as the extension from six months to 12 months with regards to the time period in which people can end their life before their projected time of death. 

‘This is not just about assisted dying, it goes further than that – it's about the right to die.’