Coroners and Justice Bill

I put my name to this amendment in the belief, which has been endorsed by others, that it is a comparatively narrow, targeted amendment. It is designed to remedy the lack of clarity about the current law and practice that gives rise to considerable anguish. I also believe that the safeguards in the amendment are by no means negligible. I say to the noble Baroness, Lady Finlay, and others who have questioned the robustness of the safeguards that the framers of the amendment would be more than happy to look at them further to see whether we can bring back something that would be more acceptable to noble Lords. The main way in which I feel I can help the Committee is by making a different point. From the representations that we have received from people who have written to us in this House and from what we have heard at various times during the debate, it would be easy to gain the impression that disabled people are completely against the kind of legislation contained in this amendment. No doubt many noble Lords have received a letter from RADAR stating that many disabled people have expressed real fears that the amendment could open the door to people being coerced into going abroad for an assisted death and pose a risk to the lives of many disabled people. I do not believe that that is a realistic fear. If that is what disabled people fear, I have to say to them, with the greatest respect, that they are mistaken. There is, no doubt, an argument to be had about assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia, but I do not think that it is to be had on this narrowly drawn, focused amendment. As has been made abundantly clear, the amendment is confined to those who two doctors are prepared to say are terminally ill, who have provided written evidence that this is the course that they wish to follow and that they know what they are doing and whose consent has been independently witnessed by someone who has no stake or vested interest in the patient’s death. There is no way in which this amendment gives the slightest encouragement to anyone thinking of coercing the generality of disabled people into going abroad for an assisted death. It is a major act to go abroad in order to die with dignity. It is implausible to suggest that people can easily be conned into doing it. Tony Benn once told the story of somebody who wanted to go to Switzerland to be assisted to die with dignity, but in the end changed his mind because he could not abide the thought of being killed in an air crash. That illustrates that it takes a certain amount of courage to undertake this course and it is not something that people can be easily bamboozled into. As I said, it would be easy to gain the impression that disabled people are completely against this kind of legislation, but that is not the case. Disabled people do not speak with one voice on this issue and there are numerous opinion polls showing steady support for legislative change. Eighty-two per cent of the general public surveyed in a 1996 British Social Attitudes Survey thought that they should have the right to ask a doctor to end their life if suffering from an incurable and painful disease. Disabled people were just as likely to be supportive as the rest of the population. Younger people who had a disability were indeed more likely to support assisted dying than non-disabled people of all ages. The survey stated that those with a disability were more pro-euthanasia than those who were able-bodied. A possible explanation for that is that disabled people were more inclined to sympathise with those in pain or suffering, or with those wholly dependent on others who wished to end their own lives. However, the survey said that that disability effect applied only among the young. It said that, among older respondents, there was no significant link with attitudes towards euthanasia. By that it meant that disabled people were neither more nor less likely than the general public to support euthanasia. In case noble Lords think that this evidence is too dated, a 2004 YouGov poll showed that, of disabled respondents, 80 per cent supported assisted dying legislation and 82 per cent believed that the current law discriminated against disabled people who wished to end their lives but could not do so without assistance. Seventy-six per cent felt that such legislation would have a positive impact or no impact on society’s view of disabled people and 84 per cent said that they would trust their doctor the same amount or more. I am afraid of being terminally ill, as I imagine most of us are. If I were, I think that I would hope to be able to avail myself of the benefits of legislation such as that enshrined in the amendment. However, as a disabled person I am not afraid of disability and my support for this amendment does not stem from my fear of disability. It is an unworthy suggestion if it is thought that that is the origin of my support for the amendment. As a disabled person, I lead a full and fulfilling life, which I hope will go on for as long as possible. As I say, when the time comes for it to end, I hope that I could avail myself of the benefit of legislation such as is enshrined in this amendment. As someone who is not afraid of disability but, like many people, who is afraid of terminal illness, I urge noble Lords to support the amendment.