The death of Lecretia Seales and Justice David Collins’ ruling that it is Parliament’s job to decide on the right to death has again breathed life into the controversial topic of euthanasia.

ACT leader and MP David Seymour has seized on this momentum and promised to file a private member’s bill on the issue in the next few weeks. This is timely, as euthanasia is quickly becoming a major civil rights issue in the same way that gay marriage morphed from a fringe concern into a full blown cause célèbre.

Unfortunately for euthanasia advocates, Seymour’s efforts are likely to turn into another quixotic tilt as judged by Parliament’s track record on the issue, even if it gets through the private member’s bill ballot process.

To recap, in 1995 then-National Party MP Michael Laws failed to convince the House that voluntary euthanasia should be legalised, with the Death with Dignity Bill falling short by a margin of 32 votes. New Zealand First MP Peter Brown got much closer in 2003, but his private member’s bill was defeated by one vote.

More recently, Labour MP Maryanne Street withdrew her End of Life Choice Bill in 2013 on the grounds that she did not want euthanasia to become a ballot box issue in the 2014 election. Post-election, Labour chose not to resubmit the bill.

Besides typical anti-euthanasia resistance, Seymour’s bill is also likely to face opposition from the pro-euthanasia crowd over concerns that a private member’s bill may not be sufficiently equipped to tackle the devilishly thorough detail required by right-to-death legislation, as was noted by pro-euthanasia MP Judith Collins.

As such it seems the only means for this measure to proceed is through the front door, requiring National to put it on the legislative agenda, and give it all the ministerial and political consideration that it is due.

That door is closed too, with Prime Minister John Key having this week ruled out a National-backed euthanasia bill, saying that he thought the best way for it to progress is through a private member’s bill.

It seems the bid to give New Zealanders the right to choose how they die is dead for now, having succumbed to something far more fatal than euthanasia: a political catch 22.