Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, has said she is likely to vote against the bill to legalise assisted dying, as she urged ministerial colleagues to keep their discussions about the policy behind the scenes.
Under a policy of government neutrality towards the private member’s bill from the Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, which will get its first Commons vote this month, ministers are permitted to talk about a previously-known stance if asked but otherwise to keep out of the debate.
Wes Streeting, the health secretary, has faced criticism for being more vocally opposed to the bill, and warning that it could create costs that may restrict other NHS services.
Harriet Harman, the Labour peer, said on Monday that Streeting had “crossed the line” with his comments.
Phillipson voted against assisted dying the last time the proposal was before the Commons in 2015, but had not said how she would vote this time.
Asked about Leadbeater’s bill, she told Sky News: “It’s for individual members of parliament to decide what they believe is best. This is a very sensitive issue. It’s difficult for everyone. As you say, back in 2015 I voted against that legislation, and I haven’t changed my mind.”
Questioned on whether this was a set position, or whether details in the bill could change her mind, Phillipson indicated the former: “There are very strongly held views on both sides, and often we’re very passionate, and it’s quite understandable reasons why people set out their position around changing the law. I continue to think about this deeply, but my position hasn’t changed since 2015.”
In an interview with Times Radio, Phillipson said it was important for ministers to discuss the bill but this should happen between themselves or with other MPs.
“I think it’s usually best if those discussions are done so behind the scenes so that people can air, privately, concerns that they might have on all sides of the argument,” she said.
Harman, the former Labour minister and now peer, has previously criticised Streeting. At the weekend, she urged him to cancel a study he had ordered into the potential cost of assisted dying.
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Asked about Streeting by BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Monday, Harman said: “This is a decision which shouldn’t be debated by party political considerations or by the government position. It should be an individual conscience matter for each individual MP and, in order to clear the space for individual MPs all to make their own decision, the government has to remain neutral.
“I do think that he’s crossed the line and has given the impression that the government is not neutral.”
She added: “The danger is that if government ministers, especially the secretary of state for health, speak out then the government’s position of neutrality is compromised, and then individual MPs will be feeling as if they have to support the government or be against the government.”