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  • Proposed assisted dying bill for England and Wales rekindles debate over choice and ethics

    Proposed assisted dying bill for England and Wales rekindles debate over choice and ethics

    LONDON — Details of a proposed law to legalize assisted dying in England and Wales have been published, rekindling debate on the controversial topic ahead of a vote in Parliament later this month.

    The draft bill, published Monday, proposes allowing terminally ill adults expected to have less than six months to live to ask for and be provided with help to end their own life, subject to safeguards and protections.

    Opponents have voiced concerns that the bill would mean people could become pressured to end their lives.

    But Labour lawmaker Kim Leadbeater, who proposed the bill, said the law has robust safeguards built into it and contains “three layers of scrutiny” — two doctors and a High Court judge will have to sign off on any decision.

    A debate and first vote on the bill is expected to take place on Nov. 29.

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Tuesday he will study the details of the bill and “will not be putting pressure on any MP (Member of Parliament) to vote one way or the other.”

    Here’s a look at what’s in the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill and the next steps:

    Under the draft legislation, only those over 18-years-old in England and Wales and who are expected to die within six months can request assisted dying.

    They must have the mental capacity to make a choice about the end of their life and will be required to make two separate declarations about their wish to die. Two independent doctors have to be satisfied the person is eligible and a High Court judge will need to approve the decision.

    Anyone found guilty of pressuring, coercing or dishonestly getting someone to make a declaration that they wish to die will face up to 14 years in prison.

    Assisted suicide is currently banned in most parts of the U.K. It is not a specific criminal offense in Scotland, but assisting the death of someone can result in a criminal charge.

    The patient must self-administer the life-ending medication themselves. No doctor or anyone else can give the medication.

    No health professional is under any obligation to provide assistance to the patient.

    Doctors who do take part would have to be satisfied the person making their declaration to die has made it voluntarily. They also must ensure the person is making an informed choice.

    The bill will be debated in Parliament and lawmakers will be able to vote on it according to their conscience, rather than along party lines.

    Opinion among lawmakers appears to be divided, though some senior ministers including Health Secretary Wes Streeting has said he intended to vote against the bill. Starmer has previously supported assisted dying, but the government says it will remain neutral on the issue.

    If the bill passes the first stage in the House of Commons, it will face further scrutiny and votes in both Houses of Parliament. Leadbeater suggested that any new law is unlikely to come into effect within the next two to three years.

    One argument supporting the bill is that wealthy individuals can travel to Switzerland, which allows foreigners to go there to legally end their lives, while others have to face possible prosecution for helping their loves ones to die.

    Other countries that have legalized assisted suicide include Australia, Belgium, Canada and parts of the United States, with regulations on who is eligible varying by jurisdiction.

    Assisted suicide is different to euthanasia, allowed in the Netherlands and Canada, which involves healthcare practitioners killing patients with a lethal injection at their request and in specific circumstances.

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  • Big offshore wind project proposed for New York as other sites are evaluated in 3 states

    Big offshore wind project proposed for New York as other sites are evaluated in 3 states

    BRIGANTINE, N.J. — Offshore wind energy projects in New York, New Jersey and Maryland are moving forward, as federal regulators examine the proposals and opponents escalate their legal challenges to the work.

    A large offshore wind farm is being proposed in the waters off New York as federal agencies are pressing ahead with reviews of seven other ocean sites.

    Community Offshore Wind, a partnership between Essen, Germany-based RWE and New York-based National Grid, on Friday proposed a wind farm that would generate 2.8 gigawatts of electricity, or enough to power 1 million homes.

    The company also has an active proposal to build a separate project in New Jersey off the coast of Long Beach Island.

    It says its New York project is the largest offshore wind project ever proposed to New York regulators, although it did not say approximately how many wind turbines it might build there.

    “New York and New Jersey are both pursuing some of the most ambitious clean energy goals in the country, and offshore wind will be critical to each state’s success,” said Dan Sieger, the company’s head of development. He said the project would be built 64 miles (100 kilometers) off the New York coast and 37 miles (60 kilometers) from New Jersey.

    In July, Community Offshore Wind submitted plans to build an offshore wind facility in New Jersey that could power 500,000 homes.

    On Monday, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management released an environmental review of six offshore wind sites covering nearly a half million acres (200,000 hectares) in New York and New Jersey, examining their possible impacts on marine life, shorebirds, air and water quality and other areas.

    It found that offshore wind projects could impact marine mammals and fish during construction, though they predicted such impacts would be temporary.

    But it also wrote that even with mitigation and monitoring procedures in place, “development would still result in unavoidable adverse impacts” including an increased risk of temporary or permanent hearing loss in whales and other marine mammals, higher risk of death for sea turtles struck by vessels and birds struck by turbine blades, and alteration of ocean views from shore.

    The American Clean Power Association called the environmental review “a vital step” toward getting new projects approved efficiently.

    On Tuesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration determined that construction of a 32-acre (13-hectare) facility in New York City where offshore wind towers will be assembled “is likely to adversely affect, but is not likely to jeopardize” the continued existence of sea turtles or Atlantic sturgeon in the area. The Arthur Kill Terminal Project is being planned for the Staten Island section of New York.

    That same day, in a review of a seventh proposed site, the agency also said a Maryland offshore wind project is not expected to kill or seriously injure any marine mammal species.

    The Maryland Offshore Wind Project could see 114 wind turbines, four offshore substation platforms and up to four offshore export cable corridors built about 11.5 miles (18.5 kilometers) off that state’s coast. Two phases, known as MarWin and Momentum Wind, already have preliminary state approval.

    And the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently granted New Jersey’s Atlantic Shores wind farm project a permit under the federal Clean Air Act. That led one of many vocal opposition groups to add to its legal challenges to the project.

    The grassroots nonprofit Save LBI is appealing the approval, and has filed notice of its intent to sue the EPA. Bob Stern, the group’s president, said the agency did not adequately consider potential air quality impacts on the Brigantine National Wilderness Area and the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in southern New Jersey.

    As of last month, there were 13 cases pending in federal courts targeting offshore wind projects, according to the American Clean Power Association. An undetermined number of additional lawsuits are active in state courts, they said.

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    Follow Wayne Parry on X at www.twitter.com/WayneParryAC



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