Cross-party MSPs urge colleagues to vote down assisted suicide Bill

It would be irresponsible of MSPs to vote through Liam McArthur’s assisted suicide Bill, a cross-party statement has warned.

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes, Scottish Conservative Edward Mountain, and Scottish Labour’s Michael Marra said “serious flaws” remained with the Bill and urged MSPs “to vote against it”.

Last year, a raft of amendments designed to mitigate some of the worst aspects of Liam McArthur’s dangerous assisted suicide Bill were blocked by the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee.

Flaws

The cross-party group stated that in their view the Bill “jeopardises the rights of disabled people and others in Scotland” and “risks creating a society where people chose to end their lives through the NHS because they can’t get support to live”.

They noted “the insufficiency of conscience protections in the Bill. Were it to become law, doctors who object to assisted death on religious or philosophical grounds would have to refer an interested patient to someone who could help to facilitate their death. This would force medics to act against their consciences.”

They continued: “There is also no absolute opt-out for institutions such as hospices, care homes, and homeless shelters. Conscience rights are vital, and they are not underwritten by the legislation.”

The statement also said “too many reasonable amendments” have been rejected at Committee stage — including those seeking to address the crime of coercive control and the drugs to be used — posing “serious implications for people across Scotland”.

Death tourism

Speaking at the launch event, Marra expressed disappointment that while “the whole of the Parliament was led to understand that safeguards would be improved” at Committee Stage, this had not happened.

Forbes feared that people “with potentially years to live might choose assisted dying for other factors unrelated to their terminal illness, because of poor mental health and so on”.

Mountain warned of the dangers of ‘death tourism’, observing: “There is always the chance that people will see Scotland, if this Bill passed, which I hasten to say I hope it doesn’t, is an easier place to end your life than down south.”

He also highlighted “a huge feeling out there that sometimes if you don’t have palliative care, the best thing is to end your life, and that seriously worries me, that is what worries me most about this Bill”.

Final stage

Across four sittings, Holyrood’s health committee majority voted against 138 amendments to McArthur’s proposals tabled by fellow MSPs.

The controversial Bill will now progress to Stage 3, where further amendments can be debated before the chamber holds a final vote on whether to pass the measures into law.

Several MSPs said they only voted in favour of the Bill at Stage 1 to allow time for debate, and only seven would need to change their vote to block it.