MPs have voted against a draft law that would have legalised assisted dying in England and Wales.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill was defeated by just 16 votes on Friday (September 11), with the House of Commons voting 286 to 270 against.
Had it been approved, the bill would have allowed adults with less than six months to live to apply for help to end their own life.
Andrew Lewis is the MP for Welwyn Hatfield (Image: Andrew Lewin)
However, those applying for an assisted death would have required the approval of two doctors and an expert panel.
The bill was debated for more than four and a half hours, with more than MPs delivering speeches.
The draft legislation had previously survived two votes in the House of Commons, in 2024 and 2025, before support dwindled.
Sir Oliver Dowden is the MP for Hertsmere (Image: House of Commons/Roger Harris)
The majority fell from 55 votes at the first major vote to just 23 at the second before it was eventually defeated.
How did your MP vote?
Both Welwyn Hatfield MP Andrew Lewin and Hertsmere MP Oliver Dowden voted in favour of the proposed legislation.
On November 29, 2024, Lewin highlighted the reason behind his decision to vote in support of the second reading of the bill.
Speaking after the vote, the Welwyn Hatfield MP said he was aware of people with "deeply held convictions on both sides of this issue."
He said he would support the bill "based on the conviction that people who are terminally ill should be able to exercise choice at the end of life."
"The debate in the House of Commons only strengthened my conviction that the status quo is not fit for purpose," he added.
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