The law on medically assisted suicide for terminally ill patients has been rejected in Veneto. The vote count ends 25 to 25, with a split in the centre-right majority led by Luca Zaia. The end-of-life law, brought to the Council by the "Coscioni" association with 9 thousand signatures, did not pass. And although the governor was in favor, with the results obtained it is as if those against the law had won, with Fratelli d'Italia and Forza Italia who, thanks also to a defection in the Democratic Party, asserted their veto on the "civilization" law .

The 3 abstentions were decisive, two from the Zaia List, and one from the Democratic Party, councilor Anna Maria Bigon. However, their participation in the voting operations brought the quota necessary for passage with an absolute majority of those present to 26, which was not reached. If the law had been passed, Veneto would have been the first region to adopt legislation on the matter . The most significant innovation - with the law now returning to commission - was to impose a maximum deadline of 27 days on local health authorities in responding to patients with irreversible pathologies who ask public health to access treatment for voluntary death.

However, the possibility remains intact because it was established by a ruling of the 2019 Council, which intervened in a legislative gap. «The law does not pass with an equal vote, 25 against 25, and goes back to the commission - observed Zaia - This is democracy . Terminal patients , in light of the Council's ruling, know that they can still request access at the end of life . It is proven proof that this popular initiative proposal did not serve to authorize the end of life, but established the times for responses." The president reiterated his utmost respect for the councilors because «on an ethical issue it is fundamental that everyone has freedom of thought and expression».

The deputy prime minister and minister of transport and infrastructure also expressed his opinion on the "rejection": «My position is absolutely clear: life must be protected from the cradle to the end, we must guarantee all the necessary care for future mothers and those who are in difficulty at the end of their days however without reaching Dutch levels. The Veneto Regional Council voted, the no votes won, from my point of view I would have voted in that direction too."