Vocal Voices

The majority was 23, with 35 abstentions and having had first hand experience of it I would also have abstained.

My opinion, and that is all it is, is that it appears to have been rushed through somewhat. It's proposal and 1st reading was only last October, so that is only eight months for such an important piece of legislation.

I'm (just about) in favour of it in principle, but there MUST be proper checks and balances. The Devil will be in the detail.

Implementation is said to be at least 4 years away. And to be honest, I don't think the provision will see a lot of use, do you?

I honestly do not know.

It is said that 70% of the public are for assisted dying, but what are they basing their views upon?

The overwhelming majority of us do not have any direct involvement in the issue so we only have opinions, and they are driven by the opinions of others who also have no direct involvement.

It is not an easy problem to solve,

No, there are no easy answers.
Would I like to be able to painlessly end my life if I was in horrendous pain with no prospect of recovery? Yes I would.

That said, i have very grave reservations about this bill.
It seems inevitable to me that the old and the vulnerable will be coerced into ending their lives. Whether by avaricious relatives, or by state officials who are acting out of a monetary motive. I think that Diane Abbott made this point very well yesterday.

Lastly the bill's proposer, Kim Leadbeater, has been extremely unimpressive.
Whether watering down the safeguards of the bill (she started off by making the rather ridiculous statement that High Court judges would have to authorise an assisted death, now she's talking about a "panel of experts") or being unable to engage with the differing viewpoints of others, she has come across very poorly.

But lastly and most importantly I think that just like the 1967 Abortion Act, which made much of it's safeguards, mission creep is inevitable.
We have already seen this in Canada where they have their own assisted dying programme - MAID.

For a quick read of what happens, here's a link.
https://thecritic.co.uk/dark-lessons-from-canada/

From the article, a quote from a Canadian doctor.

"When Canada legalised assisted suicide and euthanasia, Canadians believed it was intended to be a rare, last-resort measure, reserved for consenting adults enduring intolerable suffering at the end of life. However, lobbying efforts have steadily pushed for broader access and eligibility … British legislators have to consider how easily assisted dying can be expanded, how easily abuses can go undetected".
Which is my thoughts in a nutshell.