Great British Bake Off judge Mary Berry has suggested she supports legalising assisted suicide because she doesn’t want to become a “burden”.
Speaking to Radio Times, the 79-year-old said she wants her children to be able to give her a “pill”, and that “90 is a great time” to die.
She commented, “I don’t think very old age, if you haven’t got your marbles, can be very nice”.
Burden
“I certainly don’t want to be a burden, although under British law you can do nothing about it.
“But I would love my children to be able to give me a pill, although of course I do understand that could be abused”, she added.
Pro-life group Care Not Killing (CNK) has raised concerns about Berry’s comments.
Depressing
Spokesman Alistair Thompson said: “This is deeply depressing for such a well-loved celebrity like Mary Berry to speak out in favour of legalising euthanasia.
“It is clear that her reasons for backing euthanasia relate to her fear of becoming a burden. It is this reason that means we should never change the law”, he continued.
Berry’s mother Marjory died three years ago at the age of 105 – but the Bake Off star said she has “no desire to be a centenarian”.
Good innings
“I think 90 is a great time. You’ve had a good innings”.
She added: “My mother was in very good health until the last few months. And health is key, isn’t it?”
In July this year, a Bill to legalise assisted suicide was heavily criticised during its second reading in the House of Lords.
Frighten
Baroness Campbell of Surbiton, who uses a wheelchair and relies on a ventilator to help her breathe, said the Bill “frightens” her.
She said if the law had already changed and she had asked for help to commit suicide, “many would put their energies into that” rather than improving her situation or helping her to change her mind.
A ComRes poll recently found that opposition to legalising assisted suicide grows dramatically when people are more informed of the arguments.
Pressurised
Figures show that many of those who initially express support for assisted suicide switch to opposing it when presented with evidence from places where the practice has been legalised.
The survey found that 28 per cent of British adults who had supported the proposals switched to opposition when informed that vulnerable people may feel pressurised to end their life so as not to be a ‘burden’.