Sir Keir Starmer has said he is “not going to say or do anything that will put pressure on other people in relation to their vote” on assisted dying, after his Health Secretary was criticised for a series of interventions on the controversial issue.
The Prime Minister said it is “very important” that MPs are allowed to vote as they choose and insisted the Government is “neutral” on the issue.
He also confirmed he would be voting when MPs get their first opportunity to do so on November 29, but has not indicated whether he will support or oppose the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has been accused of crossing a line by stating his opposition to the assisted dying proposals.
He has confirmed he will be voting no to the proposed legislation, has asked his officials to carry out a cost analysis of any change and has suggested it could cost the NHS more if a new law was brought in.
In response to a question about Wes Streeting’s interventions, Sir Keir said: “The Government is neutral, and it’s a free vote, and it’s very important that it remains a free vote because people feel very strongly about this.”
He said it is “crucially important” to get the “balance right” on the issue, and added: “That’s why there’ll be a free vote.
“I’m not going to say or do anything that will put pressure on other people in relation to their vote. Every MP will have to make his or her mind up and decide what they want to do when that vote comes a week on Friday.”
Pushed further regarding Mr Streeting, the PM added: “It’s a free vote, but it’s very important we maintain neutrality, and I certainly won’t be putting pressure on anyone in relation to the way they vote, because I do respect the two different camps.”
He was speaking to reporters on the way to the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro.
Labour peer Baroness Harriet Harman last week accused Mr Streeting of breaching the Government’s neutral stance on the issue, while Baroness Margaret Hodge suggested he should “just hold fire a little bit” and that it was “a bit daft” to suggest assisted dying could cost the NHS more.
Sir Keir, who supported a change the last time the issue was voted on in the Commons nine years ago, has pledged to study the details of the latest Bill, which was published a week ago.
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater has described her Bill as the most “robust” in the world, with “three layers of scrutiny” in the form of a sign-off by two doctors and a High Court judge. It would also make coercion an offence with a possible punishment of 14 years in jail.
The PM’s comments came as Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson and Transport Secretary Louise Haigh both said they had not changed their minds since voting on previously proposed legislation in 2015.
In an interview with the PA news agency, Ms Haigh said: “Obviously, this is a matter of conscience, and the Government is neutral, but my personal view is that I intend to vote for it.”
She said she had “weighed up a number of issues, including my constituents’ concerns”, but added that she would set out further details on her reasoning after the vote “given that the Government is required to be neutral”.
Meanwhile, Ms Phillipson told BBC Radio Four’s Today programme: “Back in 2015 when this was last before Parliament, I voted against the measure and, in that time, I haven’t changed my mind.”
She suggested her concerns are around having safeguards against coercion, and on the wider discussion about the issue of assisted dying, stated that she wanted to approach the topic “in a responsible way”.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said last month she will not support the Bill, while Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has stated she will vote yes.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves last week declined to give her view, saying she will be “looking at all the evidence ahead of the vote in Parliament”.
