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The highly controversial End of Life Bill has just been narrowly passed by MPs in Parliament– setting in motion the process to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales.
It’s one of the most consequential laws of our generation which and it comes as a relief for those to whom this matters most: terminally ill adults, who want the choice to pass away on their own terms.
LBC's Benji Hyer spent the last few weeks following the journey of one of them, and this is their story.
Listen to the full show on the all-new LBC App: https://app.af.lbc.co.uk/btnc/thenewlbcapp
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0:00
I don't have a death wish in any way and I'll do everything I can to stay alive
0:05
but when it comes to that time I very much hope that it will be a peaceful, dignified death
0:11
I think that's all any of us want, isn't it, in life? 52-year-old single mum Sophie Blake has incurable stage 4 secondary breast cancer
0:21
We've spent the last few weeks following her journey as she campaigns to legalise assisted dying
0:26
and gain control over her end-of-life experience. So we booked a lot of our trips last minute
0:32
and we've had some really amazing adventures. Sophie is still living life to the fullest
0:39
but she knows her diagnosis is terminal and when the time comes, she wants to be able to pass away
0:45
on her own terms, in dignity and in comfort. When you get a terminal diagnosis, obviously
0:51
your life gets turned upside down and you evaluate everything. and how you want to live your life
0:59
And for me, that also included how I would want to also be able to die at the end
1:06
Sophie is currently undergoing treatment with side effects and with multiple compounding ailments, which she tolerates for now
1:15
Yet she fears her final stages of life could be terrifying, not least because she's allergic to medicines that might help ease her symptoms
1:24
I've known people actually begging to die because of the amount of pain they're in
1:29
and palliative care not working for them. So from that young age, I've always thought
1:35
why do we allow that to happen? Why are we, this is so cruel. You know, when we have a pet and they're suffering
1:40
we don't allow that to suffer because we don't want to see them in pain and an agony
1:45
And yet with a human being who can actually state, I don't want to be in pain, you're told no
1:52
You have to suffer. because we will not allow you to have an assisted dying in this country
1:57
Prolonging that suffering, Sophie says, would leave her teenage daughter traumatised. Maya, how do you feel
2:05
Hearing everything that your mum has said today. Well, I mean, I really support everything she's doing
2:13
cos I mean I lost like family members before I seen them at the end and it I don know you don want to remember her the way that I remember them
2:27
Because I want to remember her as she is now. She's a little bit annoying but..
2:34
I think my main worry would be just... Mum would be scared
2:38
And she'd be, I don't know, I never want to think of you in pain or anyone else
2:45
It's just not fair. For years, people like Sophie had no other recourse but hope
2:53
that their condition didn't deteriorate drastically and leave them an unbearable discomfort
2:59
That is until a bill was introduced to the House of Commons by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater in October last year
3:06
It sought to allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales a way to legally request to end their lives
3:12
provided they're mentally competent and have less than six months to live
3:16
Thank you, Mr Speaker. It's a privilege to open today's debate and to present to the House the amendments tabled in my name
3:22
It's a week before the bill faces approval or rejection in Parliament
3:26
and Sophie's come up to London to watch MPs debate the legislation
3:30
scrutinising and adding further safeguards. But with so much at stake and impassioned opposition in the House of Commons
3:37
the atmosphere inside the chamber is tense. The language coarse. I'd just like to take issue with some of the language being used
3:46
We've heard the word murder, killing, suicide. It is assisted dying. Sophie, we're at the penultimate stage of this long legislative process
3:58
What's your main takeaway from what you've heard? It can hurt sometimes when you hear the language used for people who don't want it to exist for whatever reason
4:08
I've given it my best shot to help everybody who would like to have this bill, including myself
4:13
So I just have to wait now till next Friday and see what happens
4:18
One person's choice is other people's death. It's voting day. Sophie has returned and she's faced with a vocal collection of demonstrators objecting to the bill
4:29
It feels like the end of an incredibly long journey. What are your feelings about which way this could go in a very short period of time
4:35
I'm staying really positive. The YouGo poll yesterday coming out as well that showed how much the British public still support this bill and it shows that it time for change There is so much support out there There are so many people with the lived experience of watching a loved one suffer Thank you Mr Speaker Benjamin Franklin told us that
4:56
in this world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes. In this house we debate
5:03
the latter incessantly but here and in the country as a whole discussing death is something we tend to
5:08
shy away from. And yet it will come to us all and to all
5:12
those we love. If we don't vote for changing the law today, what does that mean
5:17
It means we have many more years of heartbreaking stories from terminally ill people and their families
5:22
of pain and trauma. I'm going to finish if that's okay. Of suicide attempts
5:27
PTSD, lonely trips to Switzerland, police investigations and everything else we've all heard of in these
5:32
recent months. This may be the most fateful bill that we discuss this Parliament
5:43
It is literally a matter of life or death. I have heard talk today
5:53
about the injustices of the current situation. What could be more unjust
6:02
than to lose your life because of poorly drafted legislation. After hours of debate, this is the moment
6:16
Outside Parliament, protesters and campaigners wait with anticipation. The weight of this seismic decision lingers in the air
6:25
Inside, the result. Order. The ayes to the right 314, the noes to the left 291
6:48
The ayes to the right 314, the noes to the left 291
6:54
The ayes have it the ayes have it a look CHEERING AND APPLAUSE Minutes later Sophie emerges
7:15
An outpouring of elation and relief, a culmination of months of emotional turmoil
7:24
This has been the most wild journey. what was your immediate reaction when the vote came through you were sitting in the Commons
7:32
I cried and I'm not a crier and she'll vouch for that and I just was so overwhelmed
7:38
because it's not just for me I just felt a real burden not a burden because that's the wrong use
7:45
of word that was used everything else I felt I was going to let the terminally ill community down
7:50
who want this bill so much if I hadn't done enough I know that sounds silly because I know
7:55
it was a massive group collected but I don't know if it will happen for me in my lifetime but it
8:00
means that future generations of people with it won't have to fear suffering after a diagnosis
8:05
and I've had that over me for three years and I know that loads of other people have had that too
8:10
and it means that I can now live the time I have left with my cancer and I hope that I would live
8:15
longer than another four years but there's that comfort of knowing that I could take choice and
8:21
control at the end now, which I didn't have before. And it's given me a bit of control over
8:27
a cancer that I don't have control over, over a terminal diagnosis. It's going to give people
8:33
that choice that they currently don't have. And I think that's the, they've listened to our voices
8:39
and we've not been listened to for decades. I mean, decades. I think the first time it was
8:44
brought up in parliament was in the 1930s. So finally, it's not the what about a reason. It's
8:50
not about how it could impact everybody else it's about the people that this bill is for
8:54
Maya just a quick word from you because you watched this next to your mum how did you feel
9:01
as you saw her break down with emotion at the end well I felt so proud I mean it's been so long I
9:07
saw how much it meant her and I think it it shocked you as well how much you because I turned to the
9:13
side we were like yay and I turned everyone's crying I was like my god but I'm just I'm so
9:20
relieved as well for Mum and for everyone else. I just know so much fear has gone for so many people
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