Esther Rantzen urges Lords not to block bill

Dame Esther Rantzen has appealed to the House of Lords not to block a bill giving terminally ill adults in England and Wales the right to an assisted death, after it was backed by MPs on Friday.

The Terminally Ill Adults Bill was passed by 314 votes to 291 in the House of Commons – but will need to go through the Lords before becoming law.

Broadcaster Dame Esther, who joined the Swiss assisted dying clinic Dignitas after being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2023, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Their job is to scrutinise, to ask questions, but not to oppose.”

Critics of the bill, including Conservative peer Lord Shinkwin, say it could…