Spain’s parliament has advanced a euthanasia and assisted suicide bill that Catholic leaders had decried as “a defeat for all” which abandons those who suffer.

The Congress of Deputies, the lower house of Spain’s legislative body, passed the bill by a Dec. 17 vote of 198 to 138, with the backing of the country’s left-wing coalition and several other parties. The conservative Popular Party and the right-wing Vox party voted against the bill.

The legislation is expected to be passed by the Senate, though amendments may be suggested, then returned to the deputies for a final vote. It could become law as soon as spring of next year, making Spain the largest EU country to legalize euthanasia.

The law would allow public and private health professionals to help people kill themselves if they suffer “a serious and incurable disease” or a “debilitating and chronic condition” that is “unbearable.”

Protesters had rallied against the bill outside of the parliament building in Madrid. They held a banner that said “Government of death.”

“The euthanasia law is a defeat for civilization and a victory for the culture of death, for those who believe that some lives are more worthy than others,” said Santiago Abascal, leader of Vox.