Why it’s time for the UK to introduce a new law to allow assisted dying
Noel Conway wanted to die with dignity, yet he died slowly in pain. This month MPs can finally help others like him.
I n the UK, we pride ourselves on our shared values of compassion, dignity, and respect for individual choice. Yet, our laws fall short when it comes to supporting those enduring unbearable suffering at the end of life.
Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, set for its second reading on 29 November, on assisted dying offers an opportunity for reform, giving the UK a chance to set a gold standard in compassionate, well-regulated legislation.
Having had two very good friends and my whole family of five (apart from my mum) die in the last seven years, I’ve seen a lot of death up close. Some of those seven died in peace with excellent palliative care but some with equally excellent care nonetheless died troubled and distressed.
While palliative care deserves greater funding, it cannot alleviate all forms of suffering. Many of us have sat by loved ones who, in excruciating pain, have expressed a heartfelt and rational wish for their suffering to end. It’s no surprise that, for over a decade, polls have consistently shown that between 70-90% of the public supports a change in the law.
For those with the financial means and physical ability, travelling abroad has become the only way to exercise their right to die with dignity. But this forces people to make the difficult choice to end their lives earlier than they might have wished, far from home and the people who love them. For those who cannot or do not wish to travel abroad, equally difficult decisions are sometimes made.
Noel Conway, whose challenge to the law against assisted dying at the High Court was supported by Humanists UK where I work, chose the only legal option available to him after he lost his case.
In 2021, after years of suffering from motor neurone disease, he faced a slow protracted death as a result of having his ventilator removed. In his final statement, which was released upon his death, he said:
Over the past two months it has become increasingly evident to me that the balance of fulfilment in life, or if you like, my quality of life, has dipped into the negative. My voice has depleted to the extent that many people cannot now tell what I say and my eyesight recently deteriorated. I am already paraplegic and I cannot use my hands or fingers but I am aware that my neck muscles are weakening as are my mouth and speech muscles. I recognise that the time has come to take the decision now to do something about this… Under UK law it is perfectly legitimate to remove a ventilator from someone like me. This is not something I would have chosen but I feel that I have no alternative to ending my life without pain and suffering and without compromising others.
This is not the solution. Rather, it’s a shocking symptom of our society’s failure to support people in their most vulnerable moments, particularly those without the financial means to travel abroad.
Far from being radical, assisted dying is a choice that liberal democracies around the world are increasingly recognising as fundamental to respecting personal autonomy. Thirty-one places, including Austria, Spain, Oregon, and New Zealand, have enacted assisted dying laws that uphold compassion and dignity. Each of these countries has shown that, with care, we can support humane and safe choices at the end of life. With the benefit of hindsight, parliamentarians in the UK can draw on real-world data and decades of evidence to craft a law that respects personal autonomy while safeguarding the vulnerable.
All liberal social reforms that extend human freedom are controversial in their day, yet they are still right. We have a legal system respected for its rigour, commitment to evidence, and transparency for complex areas of law. The UK is uniquely positioned to establish a new benchmark for humane, compassionate, and safely regulated assisted dying legislation.
People in the UK, and elsewhere in the world, deserve the right to die with dignity. They deserve the compassion of choice, the autonomy to decide, and the respect of a society that honours their wishes.
It is now within parliament’s power to establish a law that respects these values, offering relief and support to those in their most vulnerable moments. This is a chance to create a legacy of compassion that will define the UK for generations to come.
NOTE
Assisted Dying Rally, 29 November 2024, 09:00-12:00, Parliament Square. | HUMANISTS UK
GOING FURTHER
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill 2024-25 | HOUSE OF COMMONS LIBRARY
Assisted dying bill: What is in proposed law? | BBC NEWS
The assisted dying bill: what it means for patients in England and Wales | THE GUARDIAN
Humanists UK welcomes Assisted Dying Bill | HUMANISTS UK
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