Assisted Dying Bill [HL]

Lord Gold Excerpts

2nd reading
Friday 22nd October 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Gold (Con)]

My Lords, this is a dangerous Bill and should be rejected. The key issues I will concentrate on are hidden persuasion coming from the family and the burden placed on the judge having to decide whether to make an assisted dying order.

The Bill requires that the High Court must be satisfied that the applicant is terminally ill and wants to end their life. The evidence supporting this must come from two doctors, one of whom may be the applicant’s GP and the other an independent doctor. Beyond requiring that those two doctors have examined the patient and read the medical records, there is no stipulation about the time they must spend with the patient or the extent of the examination that must be undertaken. Not only must they certify that the patient is terminally ill and reasonably expected to die within six months—something that experts say is incredibly difficult truly to predict—but they must certify that the applicant has voluntarily reached a clear and settled intention to end their own life without any coercion or duress. How do they do that? It is simply by talking to the patient? Perhaps the medics talk to the patient’s relatives. We all know how overburdened general practices are. It is a rare luxury to see the same doctor twice, let alone regularly. Of course there are medical records, but how can a busy GP be expected fully to understand the mental capacity of a patient by simply relying on records and, if lucky, a 10-minute appointment, which nowadays is likely to be a telephone or video call?

Perhaps a private doctor is appointed, no doubt by the family. If the medics speak to the family, how do they know that they are not motivated by their own financial interests, especially where weekly payments to a care home are eating into their future inheritance? Hidden persuasion is the risk that by words or conduct the patient is made to feel guilty that they continue to live, that they are a burden and an expense on the family, and that it would be better for everyone if they were no more. How does one determine whether such hidden persuasion has occurred?

The Bill provides no safeguards. This makes it really hard for the judge. The Bill is silent on whether the court will appoint an amicus curiae to argue the case or whether the judge is to act in an inquisitorial capacity, himself quizzing the applicant’s counsel and perhaps the doctors. The intention might be that the application will simply be on paper, with no opportunity for the court to challenge the evidence or quiz the doctors unless something looks suspicious. This is wholly unfair on the judge and, more significantly, on the unwell applicant, whose interests and well-being are paramount. We should reject this flawed Bill.