My Catholic priest tried to coerce my assisted dying vote
Chris Coghlan MP during the Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference 2024 (Credit: LFP / Alamy Stock Photo)
5 min read
Four days before the assisted dying vote, my Catholic priest wrote to say to me that if I voted for assisted dying I would be an obstinate public sinner and be denied Holy Communion.
I voted for assisted dying in accordance with the overwhelming wishes of my constituents, my conscience and nothing else. I believe that that is my duty as an MP.
At every mass the following weekend, the priest publicly announced that I had broken canon law and was being denied Holy Communion. The congregation included children who are friends with my own children.
By making a clear threat to me before the vote, the priest’s actions – intentionally or otherwise – were an attempt to coerce a Member of Parliament in their voting intention.
Another Christian MP who voted yes told me that they also found the pressure from Christian groups overwhelming. Such acts undermine the legitimacy of religious MPs who voted no. It undermines the legitimacy of religious institutions in this country when their representatives seek to coerce the democratic process. As the priest publicly outed me, I feel the need to answer for my own voting decision and my relationship with the Catholic church.
Although born a Catholic, my emotional attachment to the church didn’t really begin until I was 18, when I spent five weeks on a Catholic mission in Mozambique. Three Irish priests were trying to improve a community devasted by extreme poverty, aids and a civil war. It was inspiring. One person they looked after was Tiago, a boy who had been tortured. He had uncontrollable anger from losing his parents in the war. I recognised Tiago’s anger in myself from losing my mother when I was born and in that found my own vocation. I discovered that when your own life is broken by tragedy you can heal yourself through empathy.
I founded a social enterprise, Grow Movement, with Violet, a refugee from the Rwandan genocide and trained African entrepreneurs to escape poverty. I served as a diplomat and soldier against Isis in Iraq. It is why, as an MP, I’ve put so much time into working with a mother, Fiona Laskaris, to change the law that prevented her from saving her autistic son Christopher from murder.
The arc of history does indeed bend towards justice because we all have the power to make it so through our own lives. But whether God exists or is simply the better part of ourselves is not something I felt the need to resolve. I was comfortable with the ambiguities of being a sometimes-agnostic Catholic, not agreeing with everything the church does, until this priest appeared to decide that my private religion was his public property. It was utterly disillusioning and quite whether I will be able continue as a Catholic only time will tell.
As to assisted dying, poll after poll showed that the overwhelming majority of my constituents support it so, as their democratically elected representative, I would need a very strong reason to oppose it. I do not. I looked at it carefully throughout the process and considered (legitimately) voting against at least twice but sat down with Kim Leadbeater to allay my concerns. I was also heavily influenced by Marie Tidball, an inspirational disabled Labour MP. But I also voted for two people in particular: Liam and my mum.
My constituent Liam wrote to me saying that he has Motor Neurone disease and that the chances of him dying gasping for air or chocking on phlegm is going to be very high. He told me to put myself in his shoes and vote for it. I did.
When I went back to my childhood home a few years ago with my dad, the first thing he told me was that my mum had to come down the stairs on a stretcher. The pain stays. She died of ovarian cancer three months after I was born aged 27. Could assisted dying have helped relieve her suffering, or have given her peace of mind that there was a way out if it got too agonising? I don’t know. But I do know that if some priest had wanted to stop it, frankly I wouldn’t have given a damn about what he thought.
Chris Coghlan is the Liberal Democrat MP for Dorking and Horley
The House did not receive a response from the priest, Father Ian Vane, or Bishop Richard Moth of Arundel and Brighton by the time of publication.
In a statement to the Observer, the Catholic Diocese of Arundel and Brighton said: “The recent vote on the assisted dying bill was a complex one for all involved and while many in our society are deeply saddened by the result, we recognise the difficult task faced by MPs in seeking to represent their constituents.
“The Catholic church believes in the sanctity of life and the dignity of every person. Prior to the vote, Bishop Richard Moth encouraged members of clergy and lay faithful to write to their MPs in a private capacity to express their concerns about the bill, and to ask them to vote against the proposed legislation.
“Bishop Richard spoke to Mr Coghlan earlier this week and has offered to meet him in person to discuss the issues and concerns raised. Our prayers remain with all those impacted by the passing of this bill, and the peers in the House of Lords who are engaged in the next stage of this debate.”
