More than 60 Peers speak out against Assisted Suicide Bill

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Source: Lord Alton/Right to Life

The Assisted Dying Bill had its Second Reading in the House of Lords today, after more than seven hours and speeches from over 60 Peers opposing the Bill.

Lord Alton writes: "Given the Bill does not have Government support, it is very unlikely to be given the time in Parliament to be debated in the House of Commons and have any chance of becoming law.

"The very large number of Peers who spoke against the Bill signifies that assisted suicide and euthanasia are strongly opposed by a large proportion of the House. The content and the quality of their speeches also demonstrated beyond any doubt that this Bill is unsafe and should not pass into law.

"It is clear that many within Parliament robustly oppose this Bill."

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff, officer of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Dying Well and a Professor of Palliative Medicine, said: "Peers have today demonstrated a powerful opposition to this bill. Many vulnerable people are unaware of the dangers in going down this road, as this bill has hidden dangers, unsafe qualifying criteria, and potentially opens the door to even wider legislation.

"Instead, the focus should be on pressing the Government to do more to ensure good palliative and end-of-life care for everyone, everywhere in this country."

Baroness Campbell of Surbiton, Founder of Not Dead Yet UK and long-term campaigner on disability equality and human rights, said: "Passing this law would be a dark day in our nation's history. It would run counter to our duty to protect those in the most vulnerable situations, and would exacerbate their fears, through insidious pressure, of being regarded as an expendable burden. As has happened elsewhere, the Bill would doubtless be extended.

"No major disability rights group in the UK supports legalising assisted suicide. What they support is immediate and sustained improvement in their care. Now is not the time to abandon them to the desperate temptation of an assisted suicide under the guise of compassion."

Baroness Grey-Thompson DBE, Crossbench Life Peer and one of Britain's greatest Paralympic athletes, said: "The legal, medical and social implications of the Bill for disabled people are enormous. They need to know that doctors are obliged to do all they can to help everyone to live a good life. The current law keeps unconscious discrimination and social bias towards disabled people in check."

Right to Life said in a statement: "The assisted suicide lobby would likely have pushed for a vote at Second Reading if they felt they had the numbers to win a division. However, it looks like they realised that they would be unlikely to have sufficient support to win a vote today.

"In the House of Lords, at Second Reading, a Bill does not need to win a vote for it to progress to the next stage in the Lords, but Baroness Meacher could have divided the House in the hope of winning the vote to demonstrate support for introducing assisted suicide from the House of Lords. If she had won this division, it would have helped give additional momentum to the assisted suicide lobby's campaign to introduce assisted suicide.

"The Bill will now to proceed to Committee Stage, but is unlikely to be given time in Parliament to be debated in the House of Commons and become law, given that it is not supported by the Government."

LINKS

Lord Alton's speech - www.davidalton.net/2021/10/22/good-to-stand-and-speak-with-62-peers-today-opposing-the-meacher-bill-assisted-suicide/

See more speeches and videos from today's debate: https://righttolife.org.uk/news/meacher-assisted-suicide-bill-debate?utm_source=SUBSCRIPTION+LIST&utm_campaign=0ab076d3aa-meacher-bill-failed&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_9297ae5f15-0ab076d3aa-151642353

and Faith leaders warn of risks of Assisted Dying Bill - https://rcdow.org.uk/cardinal/news/faith-leaders-warn-of-risks-of-assisted-dying-bill-to-vulnerable/