Germany’s constitutional court has ruled that a law forbidding professional assistance to die is unconstitutional, in a move that is being seen as a major victory for assisted dying campaigners. The decision centred on a controversial 2015 law, which legalised the right for individuals to purchase life-ending substances for ‘altruistic motives’, but forbade doctors or [...]
Credit: https://ab.co/2Tfnjrm A diverse range of thirty doctors, philosophers, academics, and campaigners have signed an open letter, which appeared in the Guardian today, urging members of the British Medical Association to support assisted dying in the ongoing survey. The joint letter was organised by the UK Assisted Dying Coalition, of which My Death, [...]
The Royal College of General Practitioners has maintained its 14-year opposition to assisted dying, despite a majority of GPs voting to support a change in the law or adopt a neutral stance. The college announced the decision of its executive council, after surveying its 50,000 members on the topic last year. More than 6000 GPs [...]
A Facebook advertisement by the anti-assisted dying organisation Our duty of care UK has been taken down for failing to disclose who paid for it. The advert, which encouraged doctors to vote against changing the British Medical Association’s stance on assisted dying, was seen by more than 3,000 people before it was removed by Facebook. [...]
My Death, My Decision has called on the British Medical Association (BMA) members to consider compassion and empathy by voting in favour of assisting dying in the association’s consultation which closes on 27 February. Last year, the BMA announced it would survey its members after a motion was passed at its annual policymaking meeting to [...]
Phil Newby has been denied permission by the Court of Appeal to challenge the UK’s prohibitive law on assisted dying. Phil, 49, a father of two and member of My Death, My Decision, suffers from the degenerative condition motor neurone disease. His legal case had raised over £48,000 in donations from the public and had [...]
Credit: House of Lords| Roger Harrishttps://bit.ly/36BZyy4 Secretary of State for Justice, Robert Buckland QC, has announced that he is considering a review into the law on assisted dying, adding there is a need to ‘take into account compassionate reasons’. His comments which first appeared in the Express newspaper, follow after MPs debated assisted [...]
MPs from across the political divide have supported calls for an independent inquiry into assisted dying. My Death, My Decision welcomed MPs’ support on this issue. In a Westminster Hall debate, Christine Jardine MP, who called for the debate, acknowledged that her own views on assisted dying had changed after the death of her mother [...]
The Canadian Government has launched a consultation on changing its law on medically assisted dying. Under its current rules, Canadian adults who are of sound mind can voluntarily request an assisted death, if they suffer from a grievous and irremediable medical condition, and are in a state of irreversible decline - resulting in intolerable suffering [...]
Early in December, My Death, My Decision supporter Richard chose to end his life in Switzerland. Richard had been suffering from motor neurone disease, an incurable condition which can result in someone’s muscles wasting away and significant mobility problems. Diagnosed with the condition in 2018, Richard’s illness became progressively worse and eventually [...]