Hannah Slater has told MPs she may not live long enough to see another attempt to change the law on assisted dying, ahead of a key Commons vote next week.
Hannah, 38, has terminal cancer and a three-year-old son. She spoke to MPs at an event organised by My Death, My Decision and Humanists UK in Parliament on Wednesday, 2 September.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill returns to the House of Commons for its Second Reading on Friday 11 September. MPs have been asked to consider the legislation twice, after the previous Bill passed through the Commons but did not pass through the House of Lords because it was filibustered.
Hannah wants as much time as possible with her son. But she has also spoken openly about wanting the choice of an assisted death if, towards the end of her life, her suffering becomes unbearable.
Hannah said:
“My son is at that age where memories are just starting to form, and my greatest wish is that he will remember me. But I don’t want his last memory of me to be a stranger in a bed, fading away. I want to live, and I want every bit of time I can have with my little boy. But I also know what my illness could take from me.
I came to Parliament because, for people like me, this isn’t a debate we can just come back to in a few years. We don’t have that time.
I may not live to see another assisted dying Bill come before Parliament. MPs have another chance on 11 September, and I’m asking them to think about the people who are not being protected by the current law.”
Hannah met MPs alongside Lauren Edwards MP, who has reintroduced the Bill, Professor Lord Norton of Louth, Baroness Gerada, former President of the Royal College of General Practitioners, and Lizzi Collinge MP, who sponsored the event.
Rugby MP John Slinger responded to hearing from Hannah today:
“Hearing from Hannah today was incredibly moving. She is immensely brave. On 11 September, members of the House of Commons need to hear the testimony of people like Hannah. No one can say it more clearly or remind MPs more powerfully why we need to pass this Bill and I will personally bring her voice into the chamber of the commons”
The drop-in gave MPs the chance to ask questions about the Bill, what happened during its previous passage through Parliament and what could happen if it passes the Commons again. 
The previous Terminally Ill Adults Bill passed every stage in the House of Commons but did not complete its passage through the House of Lords before the parliamentary session ended.
Lauren Edwards MP reintroduced the legislation after securing second place in the Private Members’ Bill ballot earlier this year, taking forward what remained unfinished business from the previous Parliament.
Dave Sowry, Chair of My Death, My Decision, said:
“Hannah shouldn’t have to spend the time she has left coming to Parliament and pleading with politicians to listen. But she has, because this matters enormously to her and to many other terminally ill people.
The Commons backed this legislation before, and the public have made it clear that they support a change in the law. On 11 September, we urge MPs show up and vote in favor of this Bill so that this important issue can finally be answered.”
Notes to editors
My Death, My Decision is a grassroots campaign group that wants the law in England and Wales to allow mentally competent adults who are terminally ill or intolerably suffering from an incurable condition the option of a legal, safe, and compassionate assisted death. With the support of over 3,000 members and supporters, we advocate for an evidence-based law that would balance individual choice alongside robust safeguards and finally give the people of England and Wales choice at the end of their lives.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, sponsored by Lauren Edwards MP, is due to receive its Second Reading on Friday 11 September 2026.
The previous Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill passed its Second Reading in November 2024 by 330 votes to 275. It completed its Commons stages in June 2025 but did not complete its passage through the House of Lords before the end of the parliamentary session.
Hannah Slater and representatives from My Death, My Decision are available for interview.
Media enquiries:
Kerry Hogan
kerry.hogan@mydeath-mydecision.org.uk
07922 363248
