Written question asked by Baroness Grey-Thompson (Crossbench) on Tuesday, 23 March 2021, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 8 April 2021. It was answered by Lord Bethell (Conservative) on Wednesday, 7 April 2021 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Euthanasia and Suicide

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the study 'Does Euthanasia Have a Dampening Effect on Suicide Rates? Recent Experiences from the Netherlands', published in the Journal of Ethics in Mental Health on 28 December 2017, and (2) the relationship between the legalisation of assisted suicide and suicide rates in the general population; and what plans they have to address any such relationship as part of their Cross-Government Suicide Prevention Work plan, published in January 2019.

Answer: The Government has made no formal assessment of these studies, nor of the relationship between the legislation of assisted suicide and the rate of suicide in the general population.

Secondary information