Passed

Last night, Parliament debated David Seymour's End of Life Choice Bill - and voted 76-44 to send it to committee. Its an overwhelming vote, much larger than the bare majority I think people were expecting. And while some of it is due to NZ First's agreement to vote it forward if Seymour agreed to support a referendum clause, it still had enough support to get over the line without them.

So now the battle moves to the select committee. The bigots (including foreign bigots) are lobbying heavily on this, just as they did over homosexual law reform, civil unions, and marriage equality. So if you support the bill, its important to speak up for it. I'll post details on how to submit when they go up.

The good news is that with 77 votes for first reading, the bill has a high likelihood of passing. There will undoubtedly be amendments from the committee, but they are likely to be technical rather than substantive. Though there will be a strategic question about whether Seymour continues with the referendum path, or just opts for a straight up or down vote. I guess we'll find that out late next year.