The vote in the Scottish Parliament was closer than many had hoped — but the outcome was clear: the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill has been rejected. For the Church of Scotland, and for many Christians across Scotland and the wider UK, it is a moment of relief and gratitude.

Rt Rev Rosie Frew, Moderator of the General Assembly, welcomed the news. The Church of Scotland has consistently opposed assisted dying legislation, not from a position of indifference to suffering, but from a conviction that the answer to suffering is better palliative care, not the ending of life. The Church has argued that legalising assisted dying creates pressures — subtle and not so subtle — on vulnerable people to choose death rather than be a burden.

The debate is not over. Similar bills are progressing in England and Wales, and the arguments will continue. But Scotland's vote is a significant moment — and a reminder that democratic processes can still produce outcomes that reflect a commitment to protecting the most vulnerable.

For churches engaged in this debate, the Church of Scotland's resources on end-of-life care and the theology of suffering are worth exploring. The question of how we care for the dying is one of the most important questions our society faces — and the church has a distinctive and important voice to bring to it.