This is something of a tricky week to be writing about life and death issues, but they are the topics that have dominated both debates in Parliament and headlines.
This coming Friday we have the Third Reading of the Assisted Dying Bill. I have been in the Chair for various of the stages, and the debate, in the main has been courteous and respectful. People hold very firm views on both sides and it has been important to make sure that as many views as possible were heard. Of course that isn't easy when on average 90 members put into speak in a debate which could only be a few hours long. Obviously as I write this I don't know whether the Bill will pass or not, but I hope the debate continues to be a thoughtful one.
Earlier in the week Parliament debated Tonia Antoniazzi's amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill, as well as Caroline Dinenage's amendment on "non-fatal strangulation" and one put forward by Mike Martin the new MP for Tunbridge Wells, forcing the Government to implement the Bill originally passed in 2023 about public sexual harassment.
It was great to see Mike prepared to pursue this issue, his predecessor the lovely Greg Clark put this forward as a Private Members Bill and I served on the Bill Committee. We were so pleased when it was finally passed, but it was never enacted and it needs to be. It is real proof that parties can work together and stick at an important agenda, I just hope the Government listens to Mike and the mass of cross-party MPs who have signed his amendment.
Finally a huge thank you to the constituents who looked after me on the train on Tuesday night. The joy of an SWR carriage is not the ideal place to learn your Mum has passed away, but they were awesome and gave me both the space and the tissues I needed. But apologies to the poor man from King's Somborne who did rather have to listen to me drivelling on between Winchester and Southampton.