Wales’ Senedd has voted in favour of Westminster’s assisted dying bill.

Twenty-eight Members of Senedd voted for the motion on whether assisted dying services should be available on the Welsh NHS, with 23 against, and two abstentions on 24 February.

If they had voted against, the law may still have passed the House of Lords, and therefore those seeking assisted deaths would have had to travel to England for treatment, or access an assisted death privately in Wales.

Senedd votes do not influence the Westminster bill - a legislative consent memorandum is a vote that happens when UK legislation affects issues the Senedd controls, such as the Welsh NHS.

If the bill passes the House of Lords, the new Welsh government will need to vote again after the May Senedd election.

The Senedd voted against assisted dying in principle in 2024 and again in 2014.

The vote was free, meaning that MSs were not influenced by their parties.

Though some argued the vote should have been held after the House of Lords vote, the Welsh government stated holding the vote now would give the opportunity to influence amendments currently under debate in the Lords, for which there are over 1,000.

Westminster previously did not allow the Senedd a veto on whether assisted dying should be legal in Wales.

Both the Welsh Labour First Minister, Eluned Morgan and Health Secretary Jeremy Miles voted against the bill, as did Plaid’s spokesperson on the NHS, Mabon ap Gwynfor and deputy leader Delyth Jewell.

The bill highlights a confusing element of Wales’ devolution - the judicial system is not devolved in Wales like it is in Scotland and Northern Ireland, but the NHS is devolved to the Senedd.

Many stated they would be voting against this issue simply because of the sovereignty issue it raised.

Mabon ap Gwynfor, MS for Dwyfor Meirionnydd, said during the impassioned debate: “If legislation of this magnitude, dealing with one of the most profound areas of healthcare policy imaginable, can proceed in this way, it exposes a weakness in our current settlement.

“Wales should have that same clarity of confidence as Scotland and NI in this area.

“When a policy engages an entirely devolved field (the NHS), the Senedd shouldn't react to decisions taken elsewhere.

“It should have the authority to determine its own approach in line with the democratic will of its people.”

A Plaid Cymru amendment in the vote was also accepted, criticising the “lack of thorough consideration of the constitutional implications of this bill for Wales”.

Out of all constituency and regional MSs for Dwyfor Meirionnydd, Montgomeryshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthen East and Dinefwr, only Labour’s Joyce Watson and Plaid’s Adam Price voted in favour.

Ceredigion MS Elin Jones was ineligible to vote as she was the presiding officer overseeing the vote.

Right to Life UK described the vote as “giving a blank cheque” to Westminster and undermining the Senedd’s role to scrutinise the legislation, whilst Dignity in Dying billed it as a vote “ensuring equal access to assisted dying in Wales”.