COLCHESTER’S MP has said her vote to legalise assisted dying was a “subject close to my heart” as she became the only north Essex MP to support the move.
More than 300 MPs backed a Bill that would allow terminally ill adults with a life expectancy of less than six months to end their lives.
There were 291 MPs who opposed the private member’s Bill sponsored by Labour’s Kim Leadbeater, meaning it cleared the Commons by a majority of 23.
Clacton MP Nigel Farage, Witham MP Priti Patel, Harwich and North Essex MP Bernard Jenkin, Braintree MP James Cleverly and Maldon MP John Whittingdale all voted against the plans.
But Colchester MP, Pam Cox voted for the bill.
“I believe that people should have freedom to make their own decisions – within the law – over their own lives and their own bodies. Ultimately, I believe that this includes having more personal control over a compassionate and dignified death.”
Ms Cox thanked the “many constituents” who took the time to contact her.
She said: “This is a subject close to my heart.
“My father was one of the founders of Havens Hospice in Essex, and I have seen first-hand the vital role that hospice care plays in supporting families and individuals at the end of life.
“The current situation is untenable. Too many people are suffering at the end of their lives without the choices or support they need. There is now a clear majority of the public who support a change in the law, and Parliament must respond to that.”
Ms Cox said palliative end-of-life care need to be properly funded and resourced "irrespective of any change in the law on this matter."
She added: "Any legislation must include robust safeguards to ensure that only those with the capacity to make a clear, settled and informed decision are eligible.”
He said: "The criteria are drawn too widely to be sure that the new law would not be used in the wrong cases. The bill has lost further support since the first debate on it last year.
“One the key assurances in the first version of this bill was about the involvement of a high court judge in decisions. This was removed from the bill.
"The Health Secretary has now said that the NHS does not have the resources to implement this bill, without cutting other services. It remains to be seen what the House of Lords will now make of this Bill."
Nigel Farage, MP for Clacton, said: "Whilst I fully understand the compassionate case for the right to die, my worry remains that the right to die, once it becomes law, can become the obligation to die.
"If you look around Clacton and the constituency, you will see many elderly people in care homes.
"The weekly cost of this is astronomical. Generations that come afterwards, in many cases, literally watch their inheritances disappear.
"Whilst most people are decent human beings, I can foresee situations where many would begin to use this to pressure elderly parents or relatives who had received a bad diagnosis into saying, shouldn't you take that option?
"The law can in no way prevent coercion, however heavy or gentle.
"For those reasons, I voted against the legislation. It is also worth mentioning the state of palliative care that is an offer in our country.
"I feel there should be much more of it. Take the St Helena Hospice in Colchester. Only 20 per cent of their funding comes from the government. I would urge people whenever you see a fundraising drive for them to give generously."
In his speech in Parliament he said: “My position is driven by my concerns about the practicalities of the bill, rather than any religious viewpoint.
“It has been suggested, particularly when people talk about their experience of talking to people who have lost loved ones or who are themselves terminally ill—this has been said to me on a number of occasions—that if we had seen someone suffering, we would agree with the bill.
"I have seen someone suffering. Earlier this year, my closest friend died painfully of oesophageal cancer, and I was with him in the final weeks of his life.”
Priti Patel MP for Witham also voted against the bill.
Sir John Whittingdale, MP for Maldon, said he "received a large number of emails" from constituents regarding the bill.
He said: "I recognise that this is a deeply sensitive and personal issue.
"Many who support the bill do so from a place of compassion, shaped by their own painful experiences — and I continue to respect the sincerity and care with which those views are held.
"I have continued to study the bill closely and listen to a wide range of views. However, my position has not changed since the Second Reading. While I appreciate the intent behind the legislation, I remain opposed to it. My concerns remain centred on the risks it poses to vulnerable individuals — particularly those who are elderly, disabled, or lacking support.
"Despite the proposed safeguards, I believe there remains a real risk of subtle pressure, erosion of trust in end-of-life care, and a wider shift in societal attitudes towards assisted death. I also note the concerns expressed by a wide range of medical professions and voluntary organisations who could not support the Bill.
"Rather than legislating for assisted dying, I believe our focus should be on ensuring access to high-quality, compassionate palliative care — so that no one faces the end of life in pain, fear or isolation.
The bill says that terminally ill-people can end their life if they are over 18, have the mental capacity to make the decision, are free from coercion and are expected to die in six months.
Other criteria include two separate witnessed and signed declarations as well as two doctors assessing the individual.
The doctors would prepare the drug being taken – which is not specified by law – and the person themselves would take it.
A poll from YouGov last week said 75 per cent of Britons support assisted dying with 73 per cent of Britons supporting the bill as it stands.
Gazette reader Pete Madge said: “For six months, I watched my dad die a painful death due to prostate and bone cancer.
“I fully support assisted dying laws.”
Fellow reader Carla Wilson said: “I support assisted dying, I just hope there are proper safeguards in place for disabled people.
“Everyone should have the right to die with dignity if they get the choice.”
Meanwhile Gazette Reader Elizabeth Chambers said she was “concerned” saying she supports the principle in general but does not think there are enough safeguards in place.
She said: “What can stop people from being pressured into this decision, protected from faulty diagnosis or treatment, from medical gaslighting, which happens to women far more than men, or from removing expensive therapies from NHS because it's too expensive and there would now be a cheaper alternative.
“Anyone with a chronic illness knows these things are quite possible. The bill should be being looked at with similar consideration of improving palliative and End of Life care.”
While fellow reader David Mills said: “Just got to hope that the stuck-up House of Lords do not block it.”
The Bill will now proceed to the House of Lords, where further scrutiny and potential amendments will be made before it can become law.
