In the service of life –why Catholic hospices and care homes should not close

26 June 2025, The Tablet

Stone walls, stone paving and a curved oak bench in the Hospice UK Garden of Compassion at the Chelsea Flower Show 2025

Ellen Rooney / Alamy

There are fears that if assisted suicide becomes law, Catholic hospices and care homes will close. A senior public health professional and a hospice trustee argues that society now needs what Catholic care offers more than ever

Ahead of last Friday’s vote on Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying bill, I gave background briefings to a number of MPs across all parties. Regardless of whether they were for or against assisted suicide, they all felt that the views of MPs and expert witnesses had not been properly listened to during the committee stage, and that the group of 23 MPs proposed by Leadbeater and agreed to by the Commons had not had sufficient time to properly scrutinise the bill and propose amendments. The result was a poorly drafted bill.

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