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Helen Whately MP, Minister of State of the Department for Health and Social Care told the Health and Social Care’s inquiry on assisted dying that the Government will not stand in the way of assisted dying legislation.

Whately told MPs on the committee that the Government believes this is an issue of conscience and that it is a matter for parliament to decide what assisted dying model the UK would adopt, if it chose to. She told the committee that the government had not had any discussions on whether to give Parliament enough time for a meaningful vote. She also admitted that she had not been involved in, and was not aware of, any discussions for policies if Scotland, Jersey or the Isle of Man introduce assisted dying legislation, as they are expected to do so.

The session also heard from experts on palliative care. Jonathan Ellis, Director of Policy at Hospice UK, said the consequences of a lack of legislation should be understood as well as the potential consequences of legislation.

In a previous evidence session, the committee heard evidence that assisted dying actually leads to improvements in palliative care. Professor James Downar, Head of the Division of Palliative Care at the University of Ottawa, explained that since the introduction of an assisted dying law in 2016, Canada had seen ‘the strongest growth of palliative care in its history.’ Professor Jan Bernheim and Professor Rutger Jan van der Gaag said that legislative change in Belgium and the Netherlands had been intrinsically linked with palliative care and they now boast some of the best palliative care provisions in Europe.

The overwhelming majority of people who access assisted dying abroad are over 70, have terminal cancer and were already receiving good quality palliative care at the time of their death.

In written evidence submitted to the committee, Palliative Care Australia – one of the main palliative care organisations in Australia, which initially opposed assisted dying legislation – after extensive research came to the conclusion resoundingly that assisted dying legislation leads to improved palliative care.

My Death, My Decision would welcome an assisted dying law in the UK that grants mentally capable adults the option of an assisted death if they are enduring unbearable suffering from an incurable physical condition.

Claire Macdonald, Director of My Death, My Decision, said:

“The evidence is clear, where assisted dying is legalised, jurisdictions see better funding for palliative care, a better understanding of death and better choices for people at the end of their lives. 

We are glad to find out that the Government won’t block assisted dying legislation, but the way politics works means that we haven’t had a meaningful vote on assisted dying in nearly a decade. The people of the UK desperately want to see this issue addressed.”

Read more about our work with the Assisted Dying Inquiry: https://www.mydeath-mydecision.org.uk/2023/05/15/assisted-dying-inquiry-health-and-social-care-committee-takes-next-steps/ 

Watch the evidence session here: https://committees.parliament.uk/event/18436/formal-meeting-oral-evidence-session/ 

By Tim Wardle

Assisted dying campaigner and My Death, My Decision supporter.

This week is Dying Matters Awareness Week. I am here to talk about why my death matters to me. None of the following relates to deaths arising from war or natural disasters, solely to the end of life in the natural course of events. 

In this country, we have had a very Victorian attitude to death, one of life’s two inevitabilities, whereby the subject is not ‘nice’ to be talked about – if I talk about it, it will happen to me.

Thankfully, this is beginning to change. More and more people are coming to believe that, whether or not they believe in an afterlife, death should be celebrated and that the timing and manner of one’s death should be a matter of choice.

Some context is necessary here. I am nearing my 85th birthday and have been diagnosed with inoperable kidney cancer following a 10-year battle with bladder, prostate and lung cancer. I have lost my maternal grandfather, mother and two sisters to cancer and was present with one of my sisters at her passing. However, I have long held the view that there were circumstances that might warrant assisted dying. Watching the pain and loss of dignity my sister suffered firmly entrenched this belief in my heart. With my current diagnosis, I know what awaits me.

I am in awe of those who work in the palliative care sector for end-of-life patients, but this does not, ultimately, end the pain or prevent the loss of dignity of the recipient. Thus, as a species, we need the choice to determine our ending. That is not to say that any legislation permitting assisted dying should be mandatory for all; simply that each individual should have the opportunity to choose. Having made that choice, the means should then become available without hesitation.

Legislation is long overdue in the UK to provide for assisted dying. There are now many models around the world that could be used to cherry-pick the best practices for adoption here. One thing I am wholeheartedly against is any legislation that restricts the right of assisted dying to those diagnosed with only six months to live. Each case should be determined on its merits and the expressed view of the individual. Legislation should also prevent a third party from raising objection to an assisted death where proper protocol has been followed by the individual.

Quality of life, not quantity of life, should be the predominant factor in deciding if and when life should end. With our pets, we determine on their behalf when they should die if the quality of their lives becomes intolerable – and are praised for our kindness in doing so. How is it then that as thinking beings, able to express our wishes, we are not afforded the same?

I wish to die at a time and place of my choosing before losing control of my speech and bodily functions, and with my loved ones around me, and I do not believe that any authority has the right to deny me that choice.

You can read more from Tim in The Mirror.

We are delighted to welcome our new Patron, Dame Prue Leith. Prue will be a fantastic addition to our ever-growing organisation alongside fellow Patrons Dr Henry Marsh, Miriam Margolyes and Adam Kay, to name a few.

Dame Prue’s interest in the campaign for the legalisation of assisted dying stems from witnessing the suffering of her brother, David, who died from bone cancer in 2012. Watching her brother die an agonising, slow death, Prue found herself thinking, “David, die, please die, just die.” These are thoughts you can never imagine having. But Prue found herself in the same situation as countless others, watching loved ones die painful deaths, feeling helpless and heartbroken.

Prue joins us at a pivotal time for the campaign, and we look forward to working jointly on this issue of great social injustice. We hope that together with our Patrons, members and supporters, we can bring about a long-overdue change in the law.

If you see a blank page after pressing ‘Next’, scroll back to the top of the page.

This page includes the Health and Social Care Committee’s survey on assisted dying. This is not a duplicate survey but an embedded version of the actual survey.
You can find the survey here: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/M66AML/

If you see a blank page after pressing ‘Next’, scroll back to the top of the page.

This page includes the Health and Social Care Committee’s survey on assisted dying. This is not a duplicate survey but an embedded version of the actual survey.
You can find the survey here: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/M66AML/

Hundreds of households joined My Death, My Decision’s panel event online on 21 July, to hear from Polly Toynbee, Dr Wendy Savage, Diane Munday, and Natika Haliland their fascinating discussion on the topic of ‘A Woman’s Choice? Fighting for the right to die and women’s rights’. 

When introducing the event, My Death, My Decision’s Chair, Trevor Moore, highlighted findings that he said raised the possibility of a gendered dimension to assisted dying. For example, a higher proportion of British women end their lives, by travelling to Dignitas, than in countries where assisted dying is legal. And, according to data revealed to My Death, My Decision via a freedom of information request, women are twice as likely as men to confess to the police when they have assisted someone to die.

The resulting discussion explored the similarities between the campaigns to legalise abortion and extend women’s reproductive rights – in which the veteran campaign Diane Munday, renowned women’s rights activist Dr Wendy Savage, and executive of the Family Planning Association Natika H were closely involved – and the issue of assisted dying. 

Recognising that women are disproportionately likely to suffer from autoimmune problems, such as Alzheimer’s or Multiple Sclerosis; the similar moral arguments based on autonomy; the parallels between opponents of abortion reform and assisted dying, it was suggested that whilst assisted dying may have a particular impact on women, it wasn’t a women’s issue per se. 

However, several panellists cautioned against allowing a right-to-die to become legal for only a limited number of people in society, such as the terminally ill. Drawing upon the difficulties experienced in amending abortion legislation, Diane Munday warned a limited assisted dying law would be of use to few people and very difficult to change afterwards. 

At a particularly moving juncture, Dr Wendy Savage also discussed her personal experience of accompanying a close friend to Switzerland, and Diane Munday revealed the agonising conditions her husband endured after suffering a stroke that left him paralysed. Diane Munday said: ‘the pleading look in his eyes will stay with me until my dying day. Under extreme pressure of emotion and pain, he could get the words out “die please”. I cannot count the hours I spent sitting beside him with him saying “die please”’. 

The event concluded with a lively discussion of questions from the audience, which ranged from securing support amongst the media, the unique vulnerabilities of women and assisted dying, and the shifting attitudes among the medical profession in relation to assisted dying. 

My Death, My Decision’s Chair Trevor Moore said: 

‘Assisted dying is often framed as a simple and binary debate. Yet, as with any other issue in society, the way in which our current law impacts upon people differs depending upon their background and experiences. And inevitably this means it affects different people in different ways.

‘This is why we thought it was so important to provide a platform in which to discuss the experiences of women and the potential gendered dimensions of this debate. Whether assisted dying is a feminist issue, or indeed whether it should be framed as such, remains an open question. However, we were delighted by the thoughtful contributions of Polly Toynbee, Dr Wendy Savage, Diane Munday, and Natkia Halil – which made plain the urgent need for a change in the law, and the risks of adopting a law limited to the terminally ill alone.’

Notes:

For any more information or comment please contact My Death, My Decision’s Campaigns and Communications Manager at campaigns@mydeath-mydecision.org.uk.

About My Death, My Decision

Read more about My Death, My Decision’s campaign for an inclusive change in the law: https://www.mydeath-mydecision.org.uk/

My Death, My Decision is a grassroots non-profit organisation that campaigns for a balanced and compassionate approach to assisted dying in England and Wales. As a growing movement, we are at the forefront of social change: nearly 90% of the public now favours a change in the law to allow adults of sound mind, who are either terminally ill or facing incurable suffering, the option of a peaceful, painless, and dignified death.