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Royal College of Psychiatrists opposes assisted suicide


The Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP) says it “cannot support” Britain’s Assisted Suicide Bill, pulling its support for the legislation ahead of its return to the House of Commons on Friday.

It comes after plans to legalise assisted suicide in Scotland passed the first stage on Tuesday. The announcement by the RCP will come as a blow to supporters of the Bill, which has fallen victim to a series of setbacks since MPs voted it through at second reading in November. The Guardian newspaper is among outlets in Britain to report that at least five MPs who had abstained on the Bill have now decided to vote against it.

In a statement posted to its website, the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych) said it was calling on MPs to consider “serious concerns” about the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill for England and Wales, ahead of the pivotal Commons Report stage debate and Third Reading.

“With too many unanswered questions about the safeguarding of people with mental illness, the College has concluded that it cannot support the Bill in its current form,” it said.

“RCPsych is once again sharing its expert clinical insight to support MPs in making informed decisions ahead of the debate in Westminster on Friday 16 May 2025.”

“During the Committee stage of the parliamentary process, the College raised questions about the assessments of the coordinating doctor and independent doctor, and is now raising further questions about the multidisciplinary panel (which would include a psychiatrist) being proposed by the Bill,” it added.

The body guiding the profession in England and Wales urged MPs to consider a range of factors, including terminal illness as a risk factor for suicide.

“Should the Bill become law in England and Wales, it needs to set out clearly how and at what point a clinician would be deemed to have discharged their duty of care to those who are at risk of self-harm or suicide under existing legislation and codes of practice,” it said.

The organisation also said that there should be a requirement for a holistic assessment of unmet need, highlighting treatable needs such as intolerable pain, financial hardship and inadequate care or housing – pointing out that any of these factors could make a person want to die.

   

   

“Yet the Bill makes no provision to assess unmet needs at any stage, nor consult others involved in the person’s care or life,” it said.

RCP also said that assisted dying/assisted suicide “is not a treatment” as it “does not aim to improve a person’s health and its intended consequence is death.”

“The Bill does not specify whether AD/AS is considered a treatment option and this ambiguity has major implications in law in England and Wales. Should this Bill proceed, it should be explicit that AD/AS is not a treatment option.”

The body expressed a concern that it would not be clear what a psychiatrist’s role on a multidisciplinary panel would be, adding: “If this Bill proceeds in England and Wales, any role a psychiatrist plays in an AD/AS process should be consistent with the core duties of the profession, including determining whether a person’s wish to die can be remedied or treated.”

Dr Lade Smith CBE, President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said:

“After extensive engagement with our members, and with the expertise of our assisted dying/assisted suicide working group, the RCPsych has reached the conclusion that we are not confident in the Terminally Ill Adults Bill in its current form, and we therefore cannot support the Bill as it stands.

“It’s integral to a psychiatrist’s role to consider how people’s unmet needs affect their desire to live. The Bill, as proposed, does not honour this role, or require other clinicians involved in the process to consider whether someone’s decision to die might change with better support.

“We are urging MPs to look again at our concerns for this once-in-a-generation Bill and prevent inadequate assisted dying/assisted suicide proposals from becoming law.”

    

Last year, the RCP had said that it was considering its position, stating: “It is right that this decision is made by parliamentarians for their respective jurisdictions.” However, in a briefing it urged MPs to “give careful consideration to the safeguarding of patients and their doctors as well as the reliability of consent procedures.”

The body, ahead of MPs voting through the Bill last November, highlighted the broader issue of consent, raising concerns that assessing someone’s mental capacity can be a complex process, particularly for people with physical and mental illnesses. The RCP also said that the Bill had the potential to place pressure on existing mental health services.

It said: “While the decision to introduce AD/AS should be made by parliamentarians, all clinicians must be afforded the right to refuse to take part in an AD/AS service for any reason. This should include those who object on moral, religious or spiritual grounds as well as for professional reasons.

“If there is an AD/AS service in the future, it would need to operate on an opt-in model. It also needs to be made clear whether medical professionals will be required to refer people on for an assessment, even if they do not wish to take part in the delivery of such a service. Many clinicians may view this as a form of participation and find it to be unacceptable.”

   

Maria Maynes 

   

   

Originally published in Gript and printed with permission

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