Latest news with #PaulWaugh
The Independent
19 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Labour splits over assisted dying debate heat up ahead of crucial vote
Kim Leadbeater has been warned by a Labour colleague that an article she promoted on assisted dying has only served to sway undecided MPs against her end of life legislation. The shot across the bows from former political journalist-turned Labour Rochdale Paul Waugh has come just days ahead of the final stages in the Commons of Ms Leadbeater's Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. Ms Leadbeater had tweeted and quoted an article by Sharnee Rawson in The Guardian highlighting how her grandparents in Australia ended their lives together not long after their 70th wedding anniversary. Ms Leadbeater pulled out the touching quote: 'When they chose to die together, my grandparents wrote the final chapter of a love story spanning 70 years.' But in a warning Mr Waugh responded: 'I have the utmost sympathy for this family. But this article is precisely why more MPs are turning against the Assisted Dying Bill. Neither of the couple involved appears to have had a terminal illness, yet their deaths went ahead despite 'strict' eligibility rules.' He went on: 'The piece even spells out that the implementation of the rules was far from strict: 'It was unclear whether the spinal condition would qualify as a terminal illness.' He added: 'I voted against the UK bill at 2nd reading and will certainly do so again at 3rd reading.' Ms Leadbeater retorted to the criticism online by highlighting the strict legal criteria in Australia for end of life assistance. 'The criteria in New South Wales are quite clear,' she said. Since Ms Leadbeater won a majority of 55 for her bill at second reading last November a series of heated arguments at committee stage have seen support dwindling. At least 12 MPs who backed her previously or abstained now plan to vote against it. Concerns have been raised over Ms Leadbeater's decision to move proposals away from a judge making the final decision in court towards leaving the job to an expert panel. Ms Leadbeater argues this strengthens the process, but critics have claimed it makes coercion more likely. If it clears the Commons, there is a threat that the bill could clog up business in the Lords with strong opposition from peers, including cross bench former Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson. The row comes amid concerns that attempts to decriminalise abortion beyond the legal limit of 28 weeks will also become a distraction for the government, with divisions among the parliamentary party. The Independent has learned of plans to derail the government's Crime and Policing Bill in the Lords if amendments by Labour MPs Stella Creasy and Tonia Antoniazzi decriminalising late abortions are passed. Already, there are expected to be splits within Labour in the Commons and what is a 'conscience vote' even though it is attached to government legislation with York Central Labour MP Rachael Maskell at the forefront of arguing against the move. But a peer has told The Independent that a cross party group in the Lords are 'ready to play ping pong' with a crucial government bill over the issue. 'There will be attempts to move criminal responsibility to providers instead of women and other moves which will be difficult for the government,' a source said. 'There will be new attempts to control home abortion pill provision as well. It will be opening a can of worms. 'Because this [abortion reform] was not in the manifesto we can hold up the bill without the government being able to use the Parliament to bypass the Lords.' It is understood that opponents have been boosted by some polling last week by Whitestone Insight. Asked if 'having an illegal abortion should continue to be a criminal offence to protect both the unborn and vulnerable women who could be coerced into losing a baby they may have wanted, for example by an abusive partner', more than six in 10 (62 per cent) agreed, while less than one in five (17 per cent) disagreed. A similar number (64 per cent) agreed with the statement that 'abortion is a matter of life and death and it is therefore appropriate that the criminal law provides a clear boundary to protect everyone involved'. Just 14 per cent of those surveyed disagreed. The poll of more than 2,000 members of the public, commissioned by the pro-life group SPUC.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arrest warrant issued for member of cult exposed by BBC
An arrest warrant has been issued for a senior member of Lighthouse, the life-coaching group which was the subject of the BBC podcast series, A Very British Cult. The warrant was issued for Shaun Cooper, a director of the group's business entity Lighthouse International Group Holdings Trading LLP, for failing to attend court. Cooper is the first senior member of the group that the authorities have taken this kind of action against. Lighthouse began as a life coaching organisation founded by a man called Paul Waugh. But a BBC investigation exposed it as an organisation that ruined the lives of its members and tried to silence any critics. In the two years since the BBC published its investigation, several people have left the group and are rebuilding their lives. But a small, committed group of members - now calling themselves Lighthouse Global Media - remain devoted to Paul Waugh. They deny that Lighthouse is a cult. Following a separate investigation into Lighthouse conducted by the Insolvency Service, the High Court in London shut down the business entity "in the public interest" in March 2023, on the grounds that it had filed false or misleading accounts and not cooperated with the investigation. The Insolvency Service investigation established that, between August 2014 and July 2022, the group received more than £2.4m income - even though it had not declared any assets or income. Since then, the High Court has requested that all four company directors – Paul Waugh, Chris Nash, Shaun Cooper and Warren Vaughan – cooperate with the Official Receiver's ongoing efforts to identify any assets to pay those owed money by Lighthouse. Listen: A Very British Cult Inside Lighthouse, the life coaching cult that takes over lives Paul Waugh, the leader, moved to South Africa shortly after the company was shut down, along with Chris Nash. Both Waugh and Nash have failed to comply with a November 2024 court order to turn over Lighthouse's financial records. According to Lighthouse's letters to the court, this is because both are suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). According to Daniel Curthoys, in court for the Official Receiver, Shaun Cooper had also failed to turn up for any of the numerous interviews arranged by investigators. At a hearing on the 25 February 2025, the court was told, in a letter from Cooper's Lighthouse colleagues, that he was suffering from depression and anxiety, and had left the country. The letter was accompanied by heavily-redacted medical notes. Insolvency and Companies Court Judge Sebastian Prentis said Lighthouse's letter was "a very long way short" of explaining why Cooper had failed to appear or provide any information to the two-year investigation into Lighthouse. Granting the application for an arrest warrant, he noted that despite the claims made in Lighthouse's letter, Cooper was apparently well enough to leave Britain. Cooper's whereabouts are currently unknown. Of the four former directors, only Warren Vaughan has so far cooperated. At an earlier court hearing, he told the investigators he had left Lighthouse. In response to the investigation by the Insolvency Service, Lighthouse set up a website criticising the service, accusing it of "bullying" the group. The site says that "Lighthouse refuses to comply with the Insolvency Service's demands, beyond the bear [sic] minimum necessary, on the basis that any 'investigation' has been falsely triggered by malicious and vindictive individuals and is thereby corrupt and invalid." Inside the life coaching cult that takes over lives
