Brother of woman who died at Dignitas urges change to ‘cruel’ assisted dying law in UK

The brother of a British woman who died in Dignitas has filed for election on the second anniversary of her death.

Before Paola Marra died aged 53, she left a message urging politicians to change the “draconian law” on assisted dying in the UK.

The former charity and music industry worker, who was once married to Blur drummer Dave Rowntree, worked with famous photographer Rankin before her death to share her message on assisted dying.

He died in a Swiss clinic on March 20, 2024, after battling breast and bowel cancer.

His brother Tony Marra said he had “failed” under current law in the UK and had “no choice” but to travel alone abroad until his death.

In a film released just a day after his death, he said: “Assisted dying is not about giving up. It’s actually about regaining control. It’s not about death, it’s about dignity.”

“This is about giving people the right to end their suffering on their own terms, with compassion and respect.

“So while you’re watching this, I die. But watching this might help change the laws regarding assisted dying.”

Two years later, Mr Marra is set to join campaigners outside Parliament as the bill to legalize assisted dying in England and Wales continues to be debated in the House of Lords.

The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which passed the House of Commons last year, has been the subject of days of debate in the upper house and appears to be at risk of running out of time to become law.

It will fail if it does not complete all parliamentary stages before the current session ends in May.

Supporters of the bill accuse some of their colleagues of wasting time and trying to talk the issue out, while opponents insist they are just doing their job by examining the legislation, which they argue is unsafe in its current form and needs to be strengthened.

An attempt to change the law in Scotland failed earlier this week when MSPs at Holyrood rejected the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill.

Ahead of another day of debate on the Westminster Bill in the House of Lords on Friday, Mr Marra said: “Two years ago, my sister Paola, who had terminal bowel cancer, died alone in Switzerland.

“The England he had long called home left him no choice. He didn’t want anything extraordinary; he wanted the right to die with dignity in his own country, surrounded by the people he loved.”

“The law failed him and he had to travel hundreds of miles alone to do what should have been possible here.”

He urged his peers not to delay the bill but instead “leave it to us to choose” to prevent more families from sharing the experience he and his loved ones went through.

He said: “MPs in this country listened to the assisted dying bill and voted to support it. But now a small group of Lords are delaying the bill because real people are running out of time.

“My message to the parliament is this: Do not let another family go through the situation I went through. Every day of delay in changing the law has a human cost. Please let us choose.”

Two Crown Dependencies that are part of the British Isles but separate from the United Kingdom have legislated for assisted dying.

In February, Jersey passed draft assisted dying legislation and the legislation is awaiting royal assent before it can officially become law on the island.

The move follows the passage of legislation in the Isle of Man, where Tynwald became the first parliament in the British Isles to agree a framework for assisted dying in March 2025.

But opponents of assisted dying hailed the defeat of the Scottish Bill as “a huge victory for the most vulnerable in our society” and there were calls to focus instead on improving end-of-life care.

Former prime minister Gordon Brown said it was a “moral imperative” to make “urgently needed improvements” to such care across the UK and called on governments in the four countries to collaborate to ensure dying people are “guaranteed the most compassionate and highest quality care” regardless of where they live.

He complained that there was currently a “postcode lottery” in the UK; This means not everyone who needs it will be able to benefit from “high level care” as they approach the end of their lives.