Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Britain’s MPs have voted to legalise assisted dying, backing a landmark bill and paving the way for one of the most consequential societal shifts in decades.

The legislation to allow anyone with six months or less to live to seek help to end their own life was carried by 314 to 291 votes and will now be pushed through to the final stage of scrutiny in the House of Lords. 

If the law changes, England and Wales will join European countries such as Switzerland, the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as several US states, Canada, Australia and New Zealand in giving terminally ill people the choice to die.

The bill would allow anyone with a prognosis of less than six months the right to seek assistance in ending their life, with any decision requiring approval from two doctors.

This is a developing story