The right to die is one of the issues of our age

In light of the defeat of a bill in England, the debate concerning assisted death for terminally ill people shows no signs of being resolved any time soon, writes TP O’Mahony.            

IS THERE a right to die? The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has described this question as one of the “great dilemmas of our age”. And it is a question that will not go away, even in the aftermath of the rejection by the House of Commons on Friday of an assisted dying Bill.

The vote was 330 against with 118 in favour, a far bigger margin than commentators expected. The Private Member’s Bill was introduced by Rob Marris, a Labour MP who argued that it was about ensuring peaceful deaths rather than euthanasia.