The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill was introduced by Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur in March 2024.

Similar legislation is being considered south of the border, while the Isle of Man recently became the first jurisdiction across these islands to legislate for assisted dying.

While not making an overall recommendation on the bill, the Scottish Parliament’s health, social care and sport committee has highlighted a number of areas which it says will require further consideration if the bill clears the first legislative hurdle.

For instance, the committee has said that an independent oversight mechanism or a provision assigning responsibility to Scotland’s chief medical officer for monitoring the bill’s implementation could help to strengthen safeguards and the bill’s compliance with human rights requirements.

The committee also concluded that requirements that individuals must be at least 16 years of age and must have been ordinarily resident in Scotland for at least 12 months prior to making a request for assisted dying may require “further clarification” should the bill progress to Stage 2.

In regards to the bill’s definition of terminal illness, the committee recognised that life expectancy can be very difficult to predict and said that determining whether an individual does or does not meet the eligibility criterion of being terminally ill is best left to clinical judgement.

The committee also concluded that the issue of conscientious objection for healthcare workers will require further attention should the bill progress to Stage 2, to ensure the relevant provisions of the bill provide an appropriate level of legal clarity and certainty for all parties involved in the assisted dying process.

Concerns from those opposed to the bill around the issue of coercion are highlighted in the report and the committee welcomed a commitment from Mr McArthur to look at reviewing and updating guidance on coercion should the bill be approved at Stage 1.

The committee emphasised the importance of comprehensive guidance to ensure health practitioners can assess coercion effectively and to allow the related offence created by the bill to be appropriately policed.

As questions have been raised about the compatibility of Mr McArthur’s bill with the devolution settlement, the committee said it welcomed the Scottish government’s commitment to open dialogue with the UK government to resolve these matters.

Clare Haughey MSP, convener of the health, social care and sport committee, said: “Our committee understands the strength of feeling about this bill and that assisted dying is a complex and sensitive issue.

“We have considered this bill and the issues related to it in great detail, hearing views from a variety of individuals and organisations, and from those both for and against assisted dying.

“Ultimately, our committee believes the Stage 1 vote is a matter of conscience for each individual MSP and as a result has made no overall recommendation as to how they should vote on the general principles of the bill.

“However, should the bill progress to Stage 2, we have highlighted a number of areas which we feel will require further consideration before the bill can become law.

“These include issues around human rights, coercion, eligibility criteria, provision of assistance, self-administration and conscientious objection for healthcare workers.

“We also recognise that there are particular complexities associated with those aspects of the bill which extend beyond the limits of the powers currently devolved to the Scottish Parliament.

“If the Parliament approves the bill at Stage 1, there will need to be an open and constructive dialogue between the Scottish and UK governments to resolve these issues and to allow the bill to take full legal effect.”

Ally Thomson, director of campaign group Dignity in Dying Scotland, said: “I welcome the committee’s report and the fact that MSPs will have a free vote on extending compassionate choice to dying people who need it most in the coming weeks.

“For too long the status quo – a blanket ban on assisted dying – has caused dying Scots anguish and desperation. In forcing people to travel abroad, stop eating and drinking or take matters into their own hands in it is lacking in both compassion and safety.

“The most dangerous thing Parliament could do here is nothing.”