MPs and campaigners have raised concerns at the government’s impact assessment of the assisted suicide Bill, which predicts cost savings for the NHS and other expenditure such as state pensions if the controversial legislation is passed.

The report says the NHS could save £60 million over a decade, though it admitted the financial implications remained subject to multiple unknowns, with even the permissible methods of killing currently unspecified.

The lengthy documents were released at 4pm on Friday, leading to accusations that ministers hoped to “bury bad news” on the eve of a bank holiday weekend as the headlines were dominated by local election results.

Women’s rights group The Other Half criticised the equality impact assessment for focusing on whether vulnerable groups would have equal access to assisted deaths, rather than on whether legalised assisted dying posed a particular risk to such groups.

The assessment says disabled people might face “barriers to access” assisted suicide and “further adjustments” might need to be implemented to ensure a resulting law is not discriminatory.

The suggestion echoes previous warnings by lawyers that equalities legislation could perversely undermine safeguards, as cases could be brought arguing those ineligible for an assisted death were being discriminated against.

The Other Half said the “barriers to access” slogan was used in Canada and Australia to widen eligibility criteria after initial legalisation of assisted suicide, in one of a series of posts on social media site X.

Labour MP Jess Asato wrote on X that the assessment failed to consider the risks to women, despite research by The Other Half having found that a suspicious 88 per cent of perpetrators of “mercy killings” and failed “suicide pacts” were men.

Campaigner and academic Kathleen Stock highlighted instances where the report called for looser criteria to widen access for disadvantaged groups, including disabled and ethnic minorities (less likely to have the required photo ID).

Labour MP Diane Abbott told the Morning Star the report confirmed “grave and widespread concerns about many aspects of the Bill.

“It sets up a mood that the elderly and sick are a drain on society. The concerns about misusing the equality impact assessment are well founded, as abuse of process and language have been a characteristic of the Bill’s sponsors from day one.”

The Bill is expected to return to the Commons on May 16.