The extraordinary show of support means the Government must issue a response.
If the petition reaches 100,000 backers, the matter must be considered for a full Commons debate.
Sarah Wootton, chief executive of charity Dignity in Dying, said: “The thousands of signatures flooding into the petition are proof that support for the legalisation of assisted dying is stronger than ever. People demand change.”
“This is a cross-party issue that unites the country like almost no other. MPs must find the courage to act on assisted dying – it’s what British people are calling out for.”
The Daily Express, terminally ill TV star Dame Esther Rantzen and Dignity in Dying have joined forces to end an injustice that affects every family in Britain.
The scandal has prompted record numbers – including grandmother-of-five Dame Esther, 83, who has stage four lung cancer – to sign up to Swiss assisted dying clinic Dignitas.
Some 300 terminally ill people in the UK take their lives every year to end their suffering.
Widowed Dame Esther, who was diagnosed in January last year, told Express readers: “Your response to the petition on assisted dying is moving and inspirational.”
“Palliative care is wonderful but it cannot prevent some from dying in acute pain.”
“We want to protect those we love, and ourselves, from unnecessary suffering. It’s our life, it should be our choice.”
