Public opinion on assisted dying
Overwhelming public support for law change
We commissioned the largest poll ever conducted on assisted dying, which shows:
- Every single constituency supports law change
- Three-quarters of respondents (75%) said that they would support making it lawful for someone to seek assisted dying in the UK, with just 14% against
- Support for changing the law consistently high regardless of voters’ political affiliation
- 78% of disabled respondents support making it lawful to seek assisted dying
- Two-thirds (66%) of respondents with faith support law change, including 69% of Christians
Your local data
Search using the map below to find the level of support in your constituency:
The polling, using the same method that has accurately predicted the results of several recent elections, was carried out by Opinium Research on behalf of Dignity in Dying, and canvassed the views of more than 10,000 people across the UK.
The polling also found
- More than half of Brits (52%) would personally consider travelling to Switzerland for an assisted death if they were terminally ill, but less than 3 in 10 (28%) would be able to afford it, with costs skyrocketing to £15,000 in the last five years.
- Of those who had experienced the death of a loved one in the least 10 years, more than four in 10 (43%) said their relative suffered at the end of their life, with a quarter (27%) believing they would have considered assisted dying if it were legal.
- More than 6 in 10 people (63%) agree that legalising assisted dying would be safer than the current ban, with just 1 in 10 (11%) believing it would be less safe.
About this data
Opinium conducted an online survey amongst a nationally and politically representative sample of 10,897 UK Adults between 9th to 22nd February 2024. Three questions were modelled via multilevel regression with poststratification (MRP) to produce constituency-level estimates on the new constituency boundaries.
The full breakdown of constituency level data can be found here:
- Do you support legalising assisted dying in the UK?
- Do you want your MP to vote for legalising assisted dying?
- How affordable is the average £15,000 cost of assisted dying in Switzerland?
Note: Excludes constituencies in Northern Ireland