Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has said he is “determined” to vote against an upcoming bill to legalize assisted dying.

MPs are to debate proposals to give terminally ill people in England and Wales the right to end their lives.

The bill was introduced by Labor MP Kim Leadbeater after the Prime Minister said he would allow free voting – meaning Labor MPs could choose based on their discretion rather than following the party line.

The issue has divided Parliament, with MPs divided over ethical and practical concerns.

Sir Ed – who is also giving his MPs an independent vote – warned that elderly and disabled people could feel pressured to end their lives if they feel like a “burden”.

Sir Ed said he was “open-minded” and would listen to the debate, but also said he was “too open-minded” to vote against it.

The Kingston and Surbiton MP said he was concerned about the “psychological impact” of dying with legal aid on elderly and disabled people, largely due to his own mother’s battle with bone cancer.

Sir Ed told reporters that he had given his mother morphine towards the end of her life to help her deal with the pain of her condition.

Despite being in pain before she died, Sir Ed said he did not think “she would have wanted” someone to help her take her own life.

Rather than focus on assisted dying, the Lib Dem leader argued that the UK should “do much better” on palliative care.

Better care at the end of life would reduce people’s fear of a painful death, making many cases of assisted suicide unnecessary, he said.

Assisted dying generally refers to a person who is terminally ill and is seeking medical assistance to obtain lethal medications in order to take his or her own life.

Throughout Britain, laws prevent people from seeking medical help to die.

Euthanasia is illegal under English law and is considered manslaughter or murder. The maximum punishment is life imprisonment.

In Scotland, it is possible to be prosecuted for a crime such as culpable homicide if someone is assisted to die.

MPs are to vote on Leadbetter’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on November 29.

Full details have not yet been released, but the bill is expected to be similar to the one introduced in In the House of Lords in July 2024Which states that terminally ill adults with six months to live or less will be able to receive medical assistance to end their lives.