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Assisted Dying

My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Warner, has raised a topical and complex question of great public importance. Current English law on assisted suicide for terminally ill and mentally competent adults is not satisfactory; it sweeps too broadly and leaves too much discretion to prosecutors and too much uncertainty to patients and those who care for them. An exception to the law of homicide is needed to give mentally competent adults the choice of a medically assisted death if they have a terminal illness and no possibility of recovery and they have a clear, settled and informed wish to die. There need to be strong and effective safeguards against abuse by relatives, friends or anyone else. That is why a decriminalising measure must ensure that assistance is given only by doctors and nurses and only in accordance with good medical practice. An objective independent inquiry would provide evidence and informed opinion on whether and how such an exception should be made. It is needed for the reasons given by the noble Lord, Lord Warner, and others. We have nothing to fear but fear itself.