Assisted Suicide

Debate between Caroline Lucas and Fiona Bruce

Tuesday 27th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Caroline Lucas (Brighton, Pavilion) (Green)]

I very much welcome this debate, and I commend the Backbench Business Committee for giving it time, and the hon. Member for Croydon South (Richard Ottaway) for tabling the motion.

I am a vice-chair of the all-party group on choice at the end of life, and I am personally supportive of a change in the law on assisted dying for terminally ill, mentally competent adults. That said, I want to reiterate that today’s debate is about the application of the existing law on assisted suicide, and not about a change in the law. Of course, I fully support the development of palliative care provision, and I welcome the amendment tabled on that. I am encouraged that the evidence from countries such as Belgium and the Netherlands, as well as from states such as Oregon, shows that a change in law to support greater choice at the end of life often goes hand in hand with improvements to palliative care.

[Fiona Bruce]

Are those improvements not due to the progress made on scientific and medical developments in recent years?