Assisted suicide bill

[genandtonic]

ive popped this on Scotsnet as well, so apologies. I just wanted to raise awareness to anyone here that is in Scotland.
im not the most clever political person in the world, so apologies if I’ve got this wrong, but whether you believe in this bill or not, this seems a tad concerning given the Scottish governments current level s of nuttiness.

I got sent this from the righttolife oraganisation whether or not you agree with all of their views ( I don’t) I am glad they, and other groups are concerned about this.
given that the Scottish government don’t seem the most inspiring I’m a little concerned. They appear to be taking the English view and making it more extreme? I haven’t read it in depth so would appreciate anyone who knows more about these things adding to the thread.
It seems to have been debated 10 years ago and was voted out at that time.
now it is being proposed by …’MSP Liam McArthur (Scottish Liberal Democrat, Orkney) has lodged proposals for an Assisted Dying Scotland Members Bill. The Stage One debate and vote will take place on 13th May’

right to life news says..’Scotland’s Health, Social Care and Sport Committee directly identified a large number of major flaws with the Bill in its Stage 1 report, and made it clear that dozens of major structural changes need to be made to the Bill, should it pass Stage 1. ’
heres a link to the main article from right to life
https://righttolife.org.uk/news/scottish-health-committee-raises-over-30-concerns-with-proposed-assisted-suicide-law
and one from the bbc
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98gzyr678eo
It seems there are many additions to the bill here in Scotland that aren’t in England and wakes. It would be very useful, I suspect, to write to your MP . There is a template at the end of the right to life link.
anyway, FYI in case it’s of interest. (And you are probably all already super informed and ahead of me)

Dear x
We are now just 6 days away from the Stage One vote on the Scottish McArthur assisted suicide Bill – it’s happening this coming Tuesday, 13 May.
Between now and then, I’ll be in touch a little more often regarding the Scottish Bill. Please do keep opening my emails and, most importantly, take the actions I highlight (usually at the end of each message). Every single one makes a difference.
U-TURN
You might have seen that Liam McArthur has just made a last-minute change to his Bill, raising the eligibility age from 16 to 18. It’s likely he did this because he knows support for the Bill is on a knife-edge.
While this truly disturbing aspect of the proposed law has been changed, despite this U-turn, this still remains a dangerous Bill. If passed, it would put thousands of vulnerable people at risk.
TAKE THIS NEW 30-SECOND ACTION TODAY
The disability rights group, Not Dead Yet UK, is asking people to contact their MSPs using a new tool on their website. It explains exactly why this Bill would be a disaster for people with disabilities.
Even if you have contacted your MSPs already, it’s really important to contact your MSPs again using this new tool – so your MSPs hear specifically about the serious risks this Bill poses to people with disabilities.
Please take action now and click the button below to use their tool to contact your MSPs. It only takes 30 seconds.
Act now - Click here to contact your MSPs
Thank you so much for all your help on this.
I’ll be in touch again soon.
With best wishes,
Catherine Robinson
Right To Life UK

I wonder if maybe they think this is a good thing. There are a lot of people over the last few years who seem to be taking the view that people should just be allowed to decide to die any time and the state should do it. After all, that's what the idea of a "right to die" implies - there should be no reason to say no as long as the person isn't being coerced or something.

I've wondered if we might end up with a situation where it is illegal to kill yourself alone but the state will do it pretty much on request.

I listened to a little bit of any questions but that was enough - everyone ranting about the HofL being undemocratic and all the muppets in the audience clapping in agreement - as if the bunch we have as MPs (many of whom I wouldn’t trust to sit the right way on a toilet) are somehow more able to decide on something like this than those in the HofL who at least have many years of life experience to add to their decision making.

Anyway we can all take our own lives if fit enough -a lot of the arguing doesn’t really make sense imv

You may well be right.

It which case they did tag them together to make it seem it is one and the same things.

Its been handled so badly and now become my side right or wrong.

If Labour had any intergrity that would take on to draft a new bill, better preparity work, ie with consultations.

Then taken it to the House of Commons.

Just seems more and more nothing in the UK works any more, including politics!

I heard some of Any Answers and it was taken aback by some of the calls.

Also not helped that the women who is just there to get people to have the opportunity to have a voice, now seems to think she should interrogate them.

WTH!!!

‘same day’ euthanasia
once MAID requested no change of mind allowed
virtual assessments
geographical clustering - I guess they mean that certain clinics or doctors are more keen in killing than others.

They’ll be target setting next.

The media have been lapping up the Voluntary Euthanasia Society (Dignity in Dying) propaganda - and the latter seems to have a large pot of money to buy publicity with.

This. I despair of the naivety of anyone who thinks there's no risk this could go somewhere terrible if legalised.

I think there should be a 2/3rds majority to pass something like this - the Scottish Referendum and Brexit scraped through by a few percentage -just leaves lots of angry ‘only just losers’. Here it is a life or death matter and needs a large majority to change it.

When you start talking about 'rights' you are talking about state sanctioned and enabled policies, not about a natural option or pathway open to an individual. Anyone can kill themselves if they choose......but once you start involving other people, and especially any body or arm of the state then that matter becomes ethically concerning.

Completely disagree. It's such a massive and far-reaching issue, imo it needs to be a unanimous vote or nothing.

And a vote on the actual proposal, not a vote on a principle. But even the sponsors of this bill were not prepared to engage with the substance of what they were wanting to introduce and have resorted to gross misrepresentations on media.

Ultimately it's about money and the media mostly follows the wants of the people with the money (whether it be advertisers or rich chums).

What it will become, if passed, is rich people / upper classes deciding when predominantly poor people/lower classes die. There will be some edge cases, but that'll be the bulk of it. Not allowing expensive state paid for palliative care for people who can't pay through the nose for themselves. Then the politicians will have more money to give away to pet causes and go on jollies and get richer themselves.

It'll be a neat way to end the 'care crisis'.

Yes, there will be target setting too.

If i were disabled and not extremely well off I'd be having nightmares.

It's a sad story about the healthy woman who killed herself in Switzerland because her son had died but what it does show is that you can already have assisted death, you just need to pay for it and go abroad.

And abusers will use this as a way to legally murder people. There is no way you can adequately determine if coercion is a factor in a few days. In the Canada case upthread supposedly there will be an 'investigation' mostly because there was someone with power in that situation -one of the medics - who has raised a fuss. The woman who was put to death so being dead now can't object and I'm betting that ethical medic is going to find themselves edged out of their job now. I'd put money on it.