---

Assisted Dying

It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Bolton, South-East (Dr. Iddon) for reasons that I shall explain. I claim responsibility for encouraging the Voluntary Euthanasia Society to change its name precisely because the allegations in respect of compulsory euthanasia were used quite neatly by opponents to muddle up in the public mind, and in the argument, what it stood for, which was voluntary euthanasia, and that is quite a different matter. Following the arguments produced by the hon. Gentleman, I commend Lord Joffe and Baroness Warnock for their honesty. There are two sides in this debate, one of which, having watched how the arguments have been put forward, has been commendably straightforward about what it is seeking to achieve in tackling issues that many of us find profoundly difficult. The hon. Gentleman made it clear that each time Lord Joffe introduced measures, they were increasingly restricted to try to test the views of the other place. Lord Joffe did that because every time we deal with the fundamental principle of whether competent adults should be able to judge whether to end their lives if they are terminally ill, that proposition is overwhelmingly supported by the public. I understand that, when this matter was tested most recently, 85 per cent. of the public agreed with that basic proposition, and they do so because, like me, they see that it is only reasonable that people should have some autonomy at the end of their lives in circumstances where they have almost lost total control. If people have witnessed relatives dying in such circumstances, with total lack of dignity, they will understand that the change of name from the Voluntary Euthanasia Society is wholly appropriate. Given the limited time, I shall address two particular points. My hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Mr. Field) made a case for the ““grey area”” and for Parliament doing nothing. I am afraid to say that that argument can no longer be made. In the latest case, the judges have made it clear that it is time for Parliament to take up its responsibilities. I was concerned by the alacrity with which the Minister leapt to her feet to confirm for my hon. Friend the Member for New Forest, East (Dr. Lewis) that there have been no cases of imprisonment for assisted suicides. There have been prosecutions; people have been left on bail for murder for months and have then had to go through the judicial process. We are failing people such as the family of Debbie Purdy. They are in a position of doubt because we, as Members of Parliament, are not prepared to take up our responsibilities and make the law clear. However, the issue is not just about those who are involved in assisting people to commit suicide who would not otherwise be able to do so in circumstances in which a terminally ill person is competent and wants to bring their life to an end; it is about providing the comfort of the knowledge that a terminally ill person will potentially have control at the end of their life over circumstances that they cannot predict. That is the greatest and most striking benefit from the change in the law in the state of Oregon, where 17 per cent. of people who are dying take the opportunity to discuss the possibility of ending their life in circumstances over which they have some control with their family. That simple proposition is overwhelmingly supported by the public and would bring comfort to an increasing proportion of our population who are now dying from diseases in a more drawn-out, longer, undignified way than previous generations. We, as Members of Parliament, have a responsibility to hold a debate and bring this matter to a conclusion. We must bring our laws up to date so that they operate in the interest of those people. At the moment, we are obviating our responsibility and that is why I profoundly disagree with my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster. The grey area in which we are placing people leaves them in uncertainty and doubt, and we are not doing them any service at all. Medical professionals are now in a position in which they know that it is in the interests of their patient to administer the lethal morphine dose. However, that is cloaked by the law of dual effect, and they administer pain relief in the absolute knowledge that their patient will die. In many circumstances, the one thing they are unable to do is to establish the wishes of their patient because as soon as they enter into that discussion, they place themselves in peril of prosecution because we have failed to make the law clear. It is time for us to address that.