Citizens’ jury backs assisted dying law change
After hearing from experts over a period of eight weeks the jury have backed the legislation of assisted dying for people who are terminally ill.
Back in 2014, Labour peer Lord Falconer introduced an Assisted Dying Bill into the House of Lords. The bill proposed that terminally ill patients, who have a life expectancy of less than six months, be given the option of a medically assisted death. Since then, the topic has been widely debated, but a verdict is yet to be reached.
However, this morning the results of a citizens’ jury were published, which has arguably brought us one step closer to reaching a decision. 20 out of 28 jurors based in England agreed the law on assisted dying should be changed, with seven disagreeing and one person claiming they were undecided.
The jury, which is a method used to test public opinion on complex issues, was commissioned by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics (NCOB), an independent policy and research centre that aims to put ethics at the centre of decisions regarding health. 30 jurors made up the group and they were selected from 7,000 invitations sent to randomly selected households across England.
Overall, the jury backed assisted dying for people who have a terminal condition and are able to make their own decisions. What’s more, they supported assisted suicide, where healthcare professionals prescribe lethal drugs to help patients end their own life, and voluntary euthanasia, where medical staff administer lethal drugs.
The top three reasons for supporting the change in law were to end suffering, knowing you could die with dignity and having the option to end your own life.
In contrast, those who disagreed claimed the law could be used for the wrong reasons and that it could be misused or misinterpreted.
Chair of the NCOB, Anne Kerr, said: ‘The jury findings indicate broad support for a change in the law in England, with some important details about what this should involve. This is a significant finding that will be valuable for policymakers who are considering whether and how to take forward legislative change.’
Sarah Wootton, Chief Executive of Dignity in Dying, added: ‘It is inarguable that the public wants this reform to happen … When MPs come to debate an assisted dying bill for the first time in almost a decade, they must consider whether they will answer the call for compassion or preserve an unpopular and unsafe status quo.’
The findings of the citizens’ jury were published in Westminster and parliament is expected to debate on the issue within the coming months.
News of the jury’s results has come as other countries have begun approving plans to allow assisted dying for terminally ill patients. Jersey are the most recent, and legislators have claimed the service will be in place for residents by the middle of 2027.
Image: Alexander Grey
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