Christian group CARE criticises ‘robust safeguards’ of Assisted Dying Bill
Jamie Gillies, CARE’s Head of Campaigns and Media, has expressed concerns over the bill's rigorous eligibility criteria. In addition, over 3.400 doctors in the UK petitioned the government to challenge the law on assisted dying.
Our Duty of Care composed an open letter to the Prime Minister, urging healthcare professionals to “oppose the intentional killing of patients. The NHS is broken, with health and social care in disarray. Palliative care is woefully underfunded and many lack access to specialist provision. The thought of assisted suicide being introduced and managed safely at such a time is remarkably out of touch with the gravity of the current mental health crisis and pressures on staff. […] Canada has clearly demonstrated that safeguards can be eroded in a matter of just five years; it has been roundly criticised for introducing euthanasia for those who are disabled.”
Mr Gillies warned that over time eligibility for euthanasia may expand and become irreversible, including those who are not terminally ill, but are struggling with “unbearable suffering. People will challenge the eligibility criteria. A six-month prognosis is notoriously fraught. Doctors don’t know how long someone has left. I know of someone who was given six months and went on to live 12 years. Also, there’s no kind of legal safeguard that could prevent a person opting to end their own life because they feel like a burden on others.”
Mr Gillies also suggested that quality palliative care should be the primary focus instead of making euthanasia legal. He urged Christians across the UK to listen to the “Biblical call” and take part in fixing the care system for those who suffer.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced his intention to vote against the Bill. He voiced his concerns about vulnerable individuals being compelled to end their lives and being forced to have a “duty to die.”
The Bishop of Bath and Wells, Right Reverend Michael Beasley, also joined in condemning the bill: “I’m sceptical that any amount of safeguards are going to be able to protect the vulnerable. Who knows what is going on in people’s hearts, and who knows what is going on in terms of the pressure that people may be putting on themselves, or may be receiving from their family or friends? I don’t know that any doctor is going to be competent properly to judge that, nor any judge – particularly when we live in an environment where our health services are so overstretched.”
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is set for parliamentary consideration on the 29th November. This will be the first Commons vote on assisted dying in the UK since 2015.
