Ex-Labour MP Frank Field is dying, peer reveals

Ex-Labour MP Frank Field has announced his support for assisted dying and revealed that he is dying himself.

It said that he had recently spent time in a hospice and that he was not well enough to attend debates.

Lord Field urged other members to back the bill in his absence.

The 79-year-old spent 40 years as the MP for Birkenhead, and briefly served as minister for welfare reform in Tony Blair's first term in government.

He built a reputation as one of the most effective backbenchers in the House of Commons, with campaigns against poverty and for curbs on EU immigration.

He quit Labour's group in Parliament in 2018, saying Jeremy Corbyn's leadership had become "a force for anti-Semitism in British politics".

He was made a non-affiliated, crossbench peer by the Conservative government in 2020, after campaigning in favour of Brexit.

Lady Meacher told peers: "Our colleague, Lord Field, who is dying, asked me to read out a short statement."

In the statement, he said he "had just spent a period in a hospice and I am not well enough to participate in today's debate. Had I been, I would have spoken strongly in favour".

The statement explained his change of heart on the issue, saying: "I changed my mind on assisted dying when an MP friend was dying of cancer and wanted to die early before the full horror effects set in, but was denied this opportunity."

Lord Field said one particular argument against the bill was "unfounded", adding: "It is thought by some the culture would change and people would be pressured into ending their lives.

"[But] the number of assisted deaths in Australia and the US remains very low - under 1% - and a former supreme court judge in Victoria, Australia, [talking] about pressure from relatives has said it just hasn't been an issue."

He concluded: "I hope the house will today vote for the assisted dying bill."