Read my statement after today's vote on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) bill

Today, MPs voted in favour of the Assisted Dying Bill.

When the Speaker announced the vote there was silence, as we saw at Second Reading. A rare thing when nearly all MPs are present. But a sign of the enormity of the decision we had taken, albeit by a slender majority of just 23 votes.

I was one of the 314 MPs who voted for the bill.

Today is one of those days that marks a societal shift, even though this Bill still has a long way to go before becoming law. I believe it was time to make that shift.

I have received over 800 emails about the bill over the past few months, of which an overwhelming majority have been in favour of legalising assisted dying.

This has been a consistent trend throughout the process. No matter what the stage the bill has been at, the message from a majority of you has been clear: that you wished for me, as your representative in Westminster, to vote for it.

While I am, of course, comforted by the knowledge that most of you support my position, I want to stress that I have never taken this decision lightly, and certainly didn’t today.

I have taken all opportunities available to me to read information on this subject, as well as listen to experts on both sides of the debate. I also closely followed the committee stage process for this bill, which was lengthy and incredibly thorough.

No other Private Member’s Bill in a generation has received the same number of amendments or hours of debate. Of the near 600 amendments, around a quarter were accepted, and I believe that thanks to these changes and the work of the committee, we now have a much-improved piece of legislation compared to what we were originally presented with.

I trust the safeguards in the bill, and while it is impossible, in any circumstance, to create legislation that is absolutely perfect, I believe that by learning from all the legislatures in the world who have already passed a similar law, we can create the best and strongest legislation here.

I do not believe that this legislation puts disabled people at risk - because it is only applicable to people who are living with a six month or less terminal diagnosis. This does not include long-term conditions such as MS, it doesn’t include people living with a mental health condition, it doesn’t include those who have a disability or are living with an eating disorder. Of course someone who is disabled and has a terminal diagnosis as well would be eligible to go through the process of asking for assisted dying - as is their right along with able-bodied people.

As many of you will know I have championed the hospice sector repeatedly in Parliament and I am only too aware that palliative care has been neglected for too long.

I believe the conversation sparked by this bill has brought the issue of the inadequacies of palliative care firmly into the light, and it will continue and grow stronger. Assisted dying must never be seen as a substitute for proper palliative care. We need to see real improvements in hospice services and end-of-life care across the country.

I am aware my vote today will not be welcomed by everyone. If you do not agree with my position, I hope you can appreciate that this decision was underpinned not only by extensive consideration of both sides of the debate, but by my belief that it is right to give those who are dying a choice in how, and when, their life ends.

It is not a choice between life and death. It is giving people the choice of how to die.

This Bill has been subject to one of the most detailed committee stages of this parliamentary session, with more debates in Parliament than nearly any other piece of legislation. It has now passed the House of Commons and will move to the House of Lords for further scrutiny. There, the process will be repeated—debates, committee stages, proposed amendments, and votes.

You are welcome to continue to write to me about this - or indeed any other issue at caroline.voaden.mp@parliament.uk