Scottish Parliament Votes Down Assisted Suicide Legislation

The Scottish Parliament has voted down legislation that would have allowed terminally ill adults to choose an assisted suicide. Euthanasia laws have passed across the western world.

The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) bill fell on March 10 with 69 Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) voting against and 57 in favor, short of the 64 votes required to pass.

Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur, who tabled the bill, called the result “devastating” but said the conversation “isn’t going away.” McArthur has championed assisted dying since his re-election in 2021 and serves as one of Holyrood’s deputy presiding officers. He will need to be re-elected on May 7 to bring the issue forward again, reports the BBC.