Scottish government: Assisted dying bill not in Holyrood’s powers

McArthur said: “The Presiding Officer has certified that the Scottish Parliament can pass a bill in this area but I have always been clear that the Scottish and UK governments will need to agree to measures that will ensure that a truly comprehensive assisted dying process can operate in Scotland.

“There are established mechanisms for transferring powers to enable legislation to be fully enacted in Scotland and no reason why these cannot be applied in this case.”

He added: “Our current laws on assisted dying are failing too many terminally ill Scots, often leaving them facing an undignified and sometimes painful death despite the very best efforts of palliative care.”

In his letter, Gray said the government had a neutral position on the bill, and that ministers would be free to vote with their conscience when it comes before parliament.

At stage one, MSPs will vote on general principles of the proposals, which must be agreed if it is to progress to stage two. The bill must then pass a further stage before it can become law.

Gray said the issues he raised would need to be revisited if the bill passes the stage one vote.

Opponents of the proposals have raised concerns that some terminally ill people could feel under pressure to end their lives.

Two previous attempts to pass bills on assisted dying in 2010 and 2013 – both by the late Margo MacDonald, who had Parkinson’s disease – were rejected at stage one.