Isle of Man Assisted Dying Bill given Royal Assent

The Isle of Man's Assisted Dying Bill has been granted Royal Assent.

The law will allow adults who have lived on the island for at least five years, who have a terminal illness with a life expectancy of 12 months or less, to request an assisted death.

In a statement, the Dignity in Dying campaign group said: "The milestone is a tribute to the Manx families who campaigned for years for a change in the law."

However, opponents of the bill have said they are "deeply disappointed" at the news.

The island became the first place in the British Isles to pass laws on assisted dying in March 2025, but the bill needed amendments before Royal Assent could be given.

A similar bill in Jersey was given Royal Assent in July this year.

The Manx government said while Royal Assent had been granted, no date had yet been agreed for the law to be implemented.

In a statement, it said: "The service will not begin until government is confident it is genuinely ready.

"This will require listening carefully to those affected, drawing on clinical, legal and safeguarding expertise, and remaining open with Tynwald about the decisions still to be made."

Assisted dying could not take place on the island until specific parts of the Capacity Act were in force, which was currently expected by April 2028, it added.

Sarah Wootten, chief executive of Dignity in Dying, said: "Today is a historic and deeply emotional day for the Isle of Man, and above all for the families who made it happen."

The campaign group said every request would be subject to "strict eligibility assessments, medical oversight and independent post-death review".

Wootten added: "Dying Manx people now have the reassurance that, if their suffering becomes unbearable, they will not be abandoned to pain, fear or desperate alternatives."

The bill's author, Alex Allinson, a former Ramsey MHK, said: "This is the culmination of decades of campaigning by island residents and their politicians to ensure greater choice, compassion and dignity for those facing a terminal illness."

And Clare Barber, a former environment minister, who supported the bill, added: "Having worked as a nurse, the concept of a good death is one that is exceptionally important to me.

"This does not negate the need for palliative care, it complements it."

But campaigners against the laws have also spoken out.

In a statement Manx Duty of Care said it was "deeply disappointed" with the announcement, calling for "new members of Tynwald to table a bill to repeal it at once".

The object to the legislation, saying it "clearly breaches the European Convention on Human Rights, the Isle of Man NHS Act and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities".

The Isle of Man Medical Society said while it acknowledged the "constitutional process" of the bill receiving Royal Assent, it "maintains its firm and steadfast position regarding the profound risks this legislation poses to healthcare, vulnerable patients, and the medical profession across the island".

It said its "fundamental concerns" included the protection of vulnerable patients, a lack of regulation of the medications used, and the impact of involving Manx Care in the administration or delivery of it.

The society called for "full protection for the right of complete conscientious objection for all medical, nursing, and pharmacy personnel".

"No clinician or healthcare provider must be compelled to participate in or facilitate the procedure in any form," it added.

Campaigner Sue Biggerstaff, whose husband Simon died in May 2022 after being diagnosed with motor neurone disease, said it was a "wonderful day".

"I've been a bit emotional, I've cried a couple of times you know, but no it's just fantastic to think no one else will have to go through what Simon went through.

"They'll have the choice, don't have to take it if it's against the beliefs but they'll have the choice and that's just wonderful."

Millie Blenkinsop-French has also been a strong supporter of the bid to have the law introduced.

Her son James died of neck cancer at the age of 51 and she herself is a breast cancer survivor.

She said it would mean people would be "not so frightened now" if facing a terminal diagnosis.

She said: "It's given us all choice. If we have a terminal illness or [are] suffering, when you know that there's not going be any end to it, why go on suffering?

"The greatest thing is, it's given me choice now, that if it gets too much, I can say, enough is enough, please let me go."

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