Assisted Dying (No. 2) Bill

Debate between Rob Marris and Nadine Dorries

Friday 11th September 2015 Commons Chamber

[Rob Marris]

My hon. Friend knows the constitution of our country. If someone wants to change the law in another way, they will have to have the guts to introduce another Bill to this House.

[Nadine Dorries (Mid Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

[Rob Marris]

I will not; I must make some progress. I am conscious of the time.

I appreciate that in England and Wales the medical profession is divided on the Bill, and that, probably, the majority are against. However, as far as one can tell, there is a significant minority who are in favour of the Bill, some of them, one suspects—this is what polling indicates—because they would themselves like to have the proposed option were they terminally ill. There is no contradiction between what is proposed in the Bill and having widespread high-quality palliative care. It is not a contradiction; it is not a question of one or the other. A minority of patients’ needs cannot be met through palliative care. Despite the best efforts of palliative care from professionals, those patients keep suffering.