We write to health committee over non-invite for terminally ill people at assisted dying evidence sessions
October 29, 2024
We’ve written to Holyrood’s Health, Social Care, and Sport Committee to protest their non-invite to terminally ill people to give evidence during scrutiny of the assisted dying bill.
Earlier this month, Holyrood’s health committee announced the provisional timetable for oral evidence sessions on Liam McArthur’s assisted dying bill. As an organisation that has long campaigned for the legalisation of assisted dying in Scotland, we believe this bill should be subject to detailed and robust scrutiny. We are pleased, therefore, that the bill will be explored over several weeks by the committee, with evidence sought from a range of stakeholders. This is all in line with standard procedure for considering new laws at Holyrood.
Terminally ill people are overwhelmingly in favour of assisted dying. They must have the chance to address the committee and share their perspectives.
There is, however, one significant omission from the timetable. While disabled people and people living with long-term conditions have rightly been asked to give evidence, the same invitation has not been extended to terminally ill people. This is a baffling decision. The terminally ill represent the group of people most directly affected by assisted dying laws.
By contrast, the law would not apply to disabled people. Moreover, claims of a “slippery slope”, whereby the law would be expanded once in place to include disabled people, have been repeatedly debunked. Contrary to the scaremongering propagated by some groups, terminal illness-only models of assisted dying are rarely subject to expansion once in place.
Terminally ill people are overwhelmingly in favour of assisted dying. They must have the chance to address the committee and share their perspectives. We sincerely hope that the committee will take our letter as evidence of the clear need to revise their schedule. Our allies Friends At The End have also written to protest the decision.
Our letter was reported in The Scotsman, Scottish Daily Mail, Ireland Live, Press and Journal, and Evening Times.
Write to your MSPs to tell them you support assisted dying.
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