Britain’s leading former Paralympian turned House of Lords peer has revealed she has been sent abusive emails accusing her of being “responsible for people dying in pain” amid her opposition to the assisted dying bill.
Crossbench peer Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson is among those expected to speak in a historic debate on Friday as the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill returns to parliament.
A long-time campaigner on the rights of disabled people, she said that while it has been difficult to read some of the correspondence directed at her on what is a divisive issue, she accepts it is “part of the job”.
The interview comes as Sir Keir Starmer is facing a severe warning from Labour grandees in the House of Lords who have joined a high powered cross-party group demanding more time for the assisted dying debate.
A letter to the government’s leader of the House of Lords, Baroness Angela Smith, and chief whip Lord Kennedy warns that the bill put forward by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, which narrowly cleared the Commons, needs more scrutiny and needs to be adopted by the government to allow it substantial time.
With the employment rights bill and other key legislation already being bogged down in the Lords, the challenge threatens to slow down Sir Keir’s reform agenda further.
They also raised concerns that because it was a private member’s bill, only the sponsor’s amendments got serious attention, and it has allowed ministers a huge amount of delegated power should it pass.
Signatories include former Commonwealth head Baroness Scotland, fellow Labour peers Lord Boateng and Lord Hunt (an ex-health minister); former Tory cabinet minister and minister for the disabled Lord Harper; ex-senior judge Baroness Butler-Sloss; and former air marshall the Lord Stirrup.
They warned: “The bill is one of the most significant and consequential pieces of legislation ever to have been sent to us from the House of Commons; one that would change the relationship between the state and its citizens, and the purpose of the NHS, forever.
“There will be no going back. This legislation must therefore balance both the needs of those who would freely choose an assisted death, and those who may be pressured or coerced, or simply lack a meaningful choice, into ending their lives in this way.”
Meanwhile, in her interview with the PA news agency, Baroness Grey-Thompson said: “I’ve had emails, people saying, ‘thank you so much for protecting us’. And I’ve had some incredibly abusive ones as well, saying that I’m responsible for people dying in pain, and it will be on me.”
She said her own experience with her mother’s difficult death with cancer means she understands people’s strong feelings, but insists there should be more focus on improving end-of-life care.
She said: “It’s absolutely appalling that people are scared about how they’re going to die. But we should be having proper specialist palliative care.”
On the abuse she has received, she added: “If you accept the role in the House of Lords, you have to accept there are a lot of people who don’t like what you do.”
Almost 200 peers are said to have put their names down to speak on the bill when it comes to the Lords on Friday, with some suggesting the reading stage could go into a second day in order to give everyone time to have their say on the proposed legislation.
The Commons has voted twice on the overall bill, approving the principle of assisted dying, with peers in the Lords now given the chance to put forward changes.
The legislation, applying only to England and Wales, would face further scrutiny at committee and report stages, with those in favour hopeful it could pass into law by the end of this parliamentary session in spring. But there would be a four-year implementation period before an assisted dying service would be in place.
Baroness Grey-Thompson, who said she is not opposed to the principle of assisted dying but is against this bill as it stands, said it is difficult to know how the process will pan out. She explained: “The bill could still fall. It could run out of (parliamentary) time.”
Former lord chancellor and justice secretary Lord Charlie Falconer, who is the sponsor of the bill in the Lords, said he feels “very positive that the bill will pass”.
Assisted dying campaigner Dame Esther Rantzen has previously urged members of the House of Lords not to block landmark legislation on the issue.
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who introduced the bill to the Commons last year, appealed for no “funny games” in terms of procedure in the Lords, saying she “would be upset to think that anybody was playing games with such an important and such an emotional issue”.
Baroness Grey-Thompson said she believes peers need to “behave with a matter of conscience” when it comes to the debate and votes on amendments and “play a really straight bat on it”.
She said: “It’s my intention to bring a number of amendments to make it as safe as it can possibly be. But we do need to have a really detailed discussion.”
Lord Falconer said: “I’ve heard rumours of procedural devices being used, but I don’t think that will happen. I think the House will roll up its sleeves and get on with what it does best – scrutinising bills and seeing if they can be improved.”
Lord Falconer repeated his view that the bill is “very, very safeguarded” and said he does not believe it requires new safety measures, “but if peers think there’s something that should be added, of course, we will consider it”.
