LAST NIGHT THE Dáil voted to “ take note” of a report completed by the Oireachtas committee on assisted dying.

What does this actually mean though? Are we closer to legislation being passed on the matter? Well, no.

Given that we are in the last remaining weeks of this Dáil’s term, any legislation on assisted dying would be the decision of the next government and the next Dáil.

Technically speaking last night’s vote was not about whether TDs support or reject the recommendations of the report, it was simply a motion on whether TDs wanted to “take note” of the report.

In reality though it does give us somewhat of an indication of the current Dáil’s views on assisted dying.

What were the recommendations in the report? 

The 14-person Committee, made up of TDs and senators, sat through nine months of debate and expert testimony on the issue of assisted dying, publishing a final report at the end of the process with 38 recommendations earlier this year in March.

The overarching recommendation was that assisted dying should be made legal in Ireland, but with significant safeguards put in place. 

Most of the 38 recommendations focused on such safeguards to prevent people from being coerced into ending their lives, or from making a decision to end their life without being fully capable of doing so.

It recommended that assisted dying be available only to a person diagnosed with a disease, illness or medical condition that meets four strict criteria.

It also recommended that doctors should have the right to refuse to provide assisted dying services if they wish and that services should only be provided to people aged 18 and over. 

In addition to this, it recommended that funding for public awareness about palliative care be increased and that assisted dying and palliative care operate “completely separately and independently of each other”.

However, not all members of the Oireachtas committee were in favour of the final report and recommendations. 

In an unusual move, chair of the committee Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae issued a minority report from the committee alongside Fianna Fáil TD Robert Troy and Independent senator Rónán Mullen. Their report opposed the introduction of assisted dying legislation. 

Last night’s vote

A total of 76 TDs yesterday voted in favour of noting the report, while 53 TDs voted against. You can see how TDs voted on the Oireachtas website here.

As mentioned, the vote was simply to “note” the report and does not have any impact on how the legislation will be progressed in the next Dáil. It does however, give an indication of the views TDs in this Dáil hold on assisted dying. 

Remember though, we are weeks away from an election and the make up of the next Dáil could look quite different.

With all of that said, here’s how the vote was split:

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael allowed a free vote on the report. 

Only four Fianna Fáil TDs voted in favour of noting the report – Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien, and TDs James Lawless and Paul McAuliffe.

The votes of six Fianna Fáil TDs – including party leader Micheál Martin – were not recorded (meaning they were not in the chamber), while 25 Fianna Fáil members voted against.

In Fine Gael, 12 TDs voted in favour, 14 voted against and seven votes (including Simon Harris and Paschal Donohoe) were not recorded.

The 12 Fine Gael TDs who voted in favour were: Leo Varadkar, Helen McEntee, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Hildegarde Naughton, Emer Higgins, Neale Richmond, Richard Bruton, Ciarán Cannon, Alan Farrell, Brendan Griffin, Martin Heydon and Fergus O’Dowd.

It’s worth noting that the majority of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael TDs voted against noting the report, albeit the vote appears to indicate that there is less consensus on the issue within Fine Gael.

How both parties address the issue in their election manifestos will be one to watch.

Sinn Féin, the Green Party, Labour, the Social Democrats and People Before Profit-Solidarity all voted in favour of the motion. 

Independent Ireland’s three TDs – Michael Collins, Richard O’Donoghue and Michael Fitzmaurice – along with Aontú’s sole TD Peadai Tóibín and the Rural Independent Group voted against.