Lawmakers in UK give initial approval to bill that allows assisted suicide for terminally ill adults

Lawmakers in Great Britain granted initial approval to a bill on Friday that will let adults in Wales and England who are terminally ill end their lives.

Parliament approved the bill in a 330 to 275 vote, according to CBS News.

The vote occurred after hours of debate, emotional conversations and ethics debates.

The issue resulted in many people from all sides of the political spectrum gathering outside Parliament as the debates took place.

"Let's be clear, we're not talking about a choice between life or death, we are talking about giving dying people a choice about how to die," the bill's sponsor Kim Leadbeater said during a speech about the bill.

Those opposed to this bill said that it would make the elderly vulnerable and allow them to be potentially coerced into dying too early.

Other countries that have legalized assisted suicide include Canada and Australia.