Josh Babarinde

Josh Babarinde

Liberal Democrat — Eastbourne

Speaking in the House of Commons on 20 June 2025

Debate

Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill

Contribution

The Mother of the House, the right hon. Member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott), is absolutely right to stress the importance of giving a voice to the voiceless. That is a role that many Members in this House take deeply seriously, including proponents of this Bill. No one is more voiceless in this debate than those terminally ill adults who suffered painful, traumatic and undignified deaths under the current system, as well as their families. Nothing that I could say makes the case for this Bill—not just the principle, but this Bill—more powerfully than this letter from my constituent, which is adapted to protect her anonymity: “Following a diagnosis of an aggressive tumour, my partner’s final days were agony. He struggled to breathe and swallow and lost his ability to speak. He was incontinent & developed painful bedsores. He repeatedly asked for help to end his life. I entered his room to see that he had stuffed yards of his top sheet into his mouth in an attempt to suffocate. It was the most distressing sight and one I will never forget. I live with this image and cannot share it with our children. This could have been avoided with an assisted dying law.”

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