The bill says two doctors must assess the request and check they have reached their decision voluntarily and then final permission is granted by a high court judge who allows a life-ending “approved substance” — to be self-administered — to be prescribed to them. They point to Canada and Oregon where the promised safeguards have not protected the vulnerable and most marginalised. “It is easy to see how a ‘right to die’ could all too easily end in feeling you have a ‘duty to die,” the letter states, calling for more investment in palliative care instead.The private members’ bill is being presented by Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater after her name topped the ballot. MPs will have a free vote, meaning they can vote according to their conscience.Health secretary Wes Streeting and justice secretary Shabana Mahmood are opposed to the bill. In a letter to her constituents, Mahmood wrote: "The state should never offer death as a service.”But Leadbeater says the law needs to change “to give dying people choice and autonomy”.

Source: The Times November 25, 2024 18:42 UTC