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Assisted Dying

My Lords, I have no idea what my reaction will be if I find myself facing a terminal illness with only a few weeks to live. Will I want care at home or care in a hospice or help with suicide? What I do know is that I will want to be able to choose any of these. There are people whose religious beliefs prohibit suicide and they are entitled to have their beliefs respected. They are not entitled to impose their beliefs on me. There are people who claim that legalising assisted suicide is the beginning of a slippery slope. The evidence from places where assisted suicide is lawful does not support that claim. We do not need an inquiry. Public reaction to the deeply moving Dimbleby Lecture of Sir Terry Pratchett and to the acquittal of Kay Gilderdale on the charge of attempted murder of her daughter show that the time for change has come. Let us get on with it.