Clause 2 - Terminal illness

Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill – in the House of Commons at on 20 June 2025.

Alert me about debates like this

Amendments made: 14, page 2, line 6, at end insert—

“(1A) A person who would not otherwise meet the requirements of subsection (1) shall not be considered to meet those requirements solely as a result of voluntarily stopping eating or drinking.”—(Naz Shah.)

This amendment means that someone who is not terminally ill within the meaning of subsection (1) cannot bring themselves within that definition by voluntarily stopping eating or drinking or both.

Amendment 55, page 2, line 8, leave out “, disease or medical condition” and insert “or disease”.—(Kim Leadbeater.)

This amendment aligns the wording of subsection (2) with the wording used in subsection (1) (which defines what it means to be “terminally ill” for the purposes of the Bill).

Clause

A parliamentary bill is divided into sections called clauses.

Printed in the margin next to each clause is a brief explanatory `side-note' giving details of what the effect of the clause will be.

During the committee stage of a bill, MPs examine these clauses in detail and may introduce new clauses of their own or table amendments to the existing clauses.

When a bill becomes an Act of Parliament, clauses become known as sections.

amendment

As a bill passes through Parliament, MPs and peers may suggest amendments - or changes - which they believe will improve the quality of the legislation.

Many hundreds of amendments are proposed by members to major bills as they pass through committee stage, report stage and third reading in both Houses of Parliament.

In the end only a handful of amendments will be incorporated into any bill.

The Speaker - or the chairman in the case of standing committees - has the power to select which amendments should be debated.