Absolutely ridiculous what they are trying to do here. They're essentially trying to make it a Bill that cannot actually be utilised by anyone. There are numerous other countries that have similar laws in place and they work effectively. In Canada they've extended it, democratically, and everyone seems to be incredibly concerned by that. We're not looking to extend it the way the Canadians have and passing this Bill into law doesn't mean we'll suddenly sign off on future amendments. I don't think assisting those who are terminal and in immense pain softens people's thinking and suddenly they want to take out people with disabilities or mental illness.
I wonder if there's something they could introduce as a pre-emptive decision to prevent it's wrongful use? Maybe like a declaration people fill out when they are undergoing treatment to say, if the time came when they were terminal and in pain they would authorise it. That way there's time for them to get the sign-off from a professional and be in the right state of mind.
It's all a bit of a joke though. My Mum's mental health was all over the place during her treatment for cancer. One time she was in hospital for an op and had just had enough and had "do not resuscitate" on her bed before my Dad challenged it and said she wasn't in the right mental state to make that call. She survived it anyway, but that will be happening all over the country and there's no robust test needed for someone to sign up to it.
web.archive.org
