UK's proposed assisted dying law could be delayed until 2029

LONDON (Reuters) -Britain's proposed assisted dying law for terminally ill people could be delayed until 2029, after the next election, casting doubt over the future of the legislation.

In a historic vote last year, lawmakers backed a bill to allow assisted dying, paving the way for Britain to follow other countries such as Australia, Canada and some U.S. states in what would be one of its biggest social reforms in a generation.

But the deadline for implementation of the new law is set to be pushed back from two years to four under changes proposed by lawmaker Kim Leadbeater, who is sponsoring the bill, according to a statement from her office on Wednesday.

Under the proposed law, mentally competent, terminally ill adults in England and Wales with six months or less to live would be given the right to end their lives with medical help.

Polls show that a majority of Britons back assisted dying and supporters say the law needs to catch up with public opinion.

But following the initial vote in November, the bill is now under scrutiny and needs to work its way through both the House of Commons and the upper chamber, the House of Lords.

Amendments mean implementation will take more than the two years originally forecast, said Leadbeater, a lawmaker from Britain's governing Labour Party.

The most notable amendment will remove the requirement for a High Court judge to sign off each case and instead rely on a panel of experts, including a senior legal figure, psychiatrists and social workers.

Setting up a voluntary commission of experts will take longer than simply referring cases to the High Court.

'NOT A TARGET'

But Leadbeater said the law could be implemented before 2029: "Four years is very much a backstop, it is not a target."

If it did take until 2029, it could be pushed back until after the next national election, which must be held by August of that year, putting it at the mercy of the next government.

Those in favour of the bill say it is about shortening the suffering of those who are terminally ill and giving them more control.

Opponents of assisted dying say there are not sufficient safeguards to protect vulnerable people from being coerced or pressured into taking their own lives.

The Isle of Man, a self-governing British Crown Dependency, on Tuesday approved an assisted dying bill, making the island the first in the British Isles where terminally ill people would have the legal right to end their lives.

(Reporting by Sarah YoungEditing by Gareth Jones)