A MUM who helped her son die after watching him in agony as he battled a terminal illness has praised MPs for backing a Bill to legalise assisted dying during an historic vote. 

Heather Pratten, from Rayleigh, is now hoping the Terminally ill Adults (End of Life) Bill will progress through Parliament and ultimately become law so families can avoid the pain of watching their loved ones suffer. 

After five hours of emotionally-charged debate on Friday, the House of Commons approved the second reading of the Bill by 330 votes to 275, however Southend West and Leigh Labour MP David Burton-Sampson was the only south Essex MP to vote in favour. 

Heather Pratten has been a long-time proponent of assisted dying reformHeather Pratten has been a long-time proponent of assisted dying reform (Image: Heather Pratten)
If it becomes law, the Bill would allow terminally ill adults with a life expectancy of less than six months to end their lives.

Heather helped her son, Nigel, die in 2000 as he battled the life-limiting Huntington’s disease. At the time, she was arrested for murder but later charged with aiding and abetting suicide.

The 87-year-old campaigner said: “For so long we’ve lagged far behind other countries and this Bill will allow people to die with their families around them.

 

The bill was put forward by Labour MP, Kim LeadbeaterThe bill was put forward by Labour MP, Kim Leadbeater (Image: Kim Leadbeater) “People want to die with their family around them, they don’t want to be alone. It must be nice to know that all of your family will be with you when that time comes.

“I’m satisfied for this to go through as it is, whether it will be the beginning of something else or stay that it is, this is a good start and I’m so happy it passed.” 

Heather said she is satisfied with the Bill in its current form and has rejected claims that some individuals may be pressured to end their lives by family members with financial motives.

“You are only eligible for assisted dying if you have less than six months to live. If they wanted to pressure a dying relative for a financial reason, they’d only have to wait six months anyway. It’s unrealistic,” she said.

Mr Burton-Sampson ran a poll ahead of the vote, with 55 per cent of respondents against the Bill and 42 per cent of the 423 constituents for. 

He said: “This was not an easy decision and I appreciate all of the information, personal stories, and deeply held beliefs that have been shared with me during this period. 

“My Christian faith is part of my rationale but there are also my own feelings that I could not bear to be present whilst someone I love knowingly took their own life, through my own fear of loss.