This House of Lords Library briefing sets out the law in Canada and selected states in the United States ahead of the question for short debate on 6 March 2017 on whether recent legislative changes on assisted dying in North America provide an appropriate basis for legislation in England and Wales. It also provides an overview of the law as it currently stands in England and Wales, as well as a brief legal history of the changes and attempts to change it.
Assisted Dying Legislation: North America and England and Wales (122KB PDF)
Following the Canadian Supreme Court’s decision in Carter v Canada (Attorney General) in 2015, which declared that sections of the Canadian Criminal Code were in violation of an individual’s rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, change to the Criminal Code exempts certain medical practitioners and individuals from culpable homicide, therefore allowing both voluntary euthanasia and assisted suicide, subject to a number of conditions. ‘Assisted dying’ or ‘assisted suicide’ is unlawful in the majority of US states, save for Oregon, Washington, Vermont, California and Colorado, allow adult residents of their state, who are capable of voluntarily making decisions about their health, and are terminally ill with a prognosis of six months, to seek lethal medication for self-administration. Montana provides a defence for physicians on the event they face homicide changes.
Section 2 of the Suicide Act 1961 (as amended by the Coroners and Justice Act 2009) in England and Wales makes it criminally unlawful for an individual to perform an act capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person, where that individual’s act was intended to encourage, assist or attempt at suicide. There have been a number of challenges to the Suicide Act 1961. In 2014, the Supreme Court considered the state of the law in the context of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which ultimately deferred the matter to Parliament for consideration. Thus far, there have been attempted amendments and several private member’s bills in parliament that have been unsuccessful in changing the law.
Assisted Dying Legislation: North America and England and Wales (122KB PDF)
In January 2026, the government announced a new scheme to support urgent repairs and essential improvements to listed places of worship. Called the ‘Places of worship renewal fund for England’, it replaced the ‘Listed places of worship grant scheme’ which had run since 2001. This briefing provides an overview of both schemes, the government’s reasoning for the change and the reaction of stakeholders.
There have been big differences in expenditure across different forms of healthcare for a number of years. In 2024/25, spending on acute care was £74.7bn, compared to £14.5bn on primary care and £13.8bn on community services. Both the 2024 Labour Party manifesto and the subsequent 10 year health plan for England contained an emphasis on shifting towards more care being delivered in local communities rather than in acute settings, dubbed a ‘neighbourhood health service’.
Myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as ME or chronic fatigue syndrome, is a long-term health condition that is estimated to affect over 400,000 people in the UK. It is a fluctuating condition with symptoms including fatigue, sleep problems and brain fog. In 2025 the government published its final delivery plan on ME, which aimed to improve care and support for those with the condition.
