There has been no let-up in the steady stream of ethical issues which have come to prominence over this last year. Probably the issue of greatest concern to the CMF Study Group has been that of euthanasia and assisted suicide. It is plain that the legal and political consensus on euthanasia which has survived in the UK since the House of Lords Select Committee report in 1994 is now being seriously challenged. Lord Joffe’s Patient Assisted Dying Bill, which passed its second reading in the House of Lords on 6 June, is just one of several moves towards the legalisation of some form of mercy killing in the UK. As a Fellowship it is clear that we have a special role to play in the public debate and the Study Group has been keen to try to mobilise CMF members with clinical expertise in relevant areas to write to politicians and to make their voices heard. One of the most important needs is to counter media misinformation about conditions such as motor neurone disease and to emphasise the role and the success of modern palliative care methods. The CMF Files series has continued to develop and the last year has seen the publication of files on the Mind Body problem, Advance directives, Homosexuality and Sex Selection. We are extremely grateful to a number of authors for their contributions, and to Pete Moore and Peter Saunders who have provided vital editorial oversight. The files are being distributed widely to schools and colleges and increasingly internationally as well (the first 20 files are currently being translated into Chinese!) Further articles are in the pipeline and as always we welcome feedback and suggestions for topics and for authors.