Esther Rantzen hails 'historic' bid to legalise assisted dying in Scotland

Dame Esther Rantzen, who has stage four lung cancer and has said she would consider assisted dying, hailed the ‘historic’ move

Scotland could become the first UK nation to legalise assisted dying under a new Bill introduced at Holyrood.

Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur will mount a fresh push to change the law that would allow people over the age of 16 living in Scotland with a terminal illness to be given help to end their life. They would have to have the mental capacity to make such a request, which would have to be made voluntarily without them being coerced.

Dame Esther Rantzen, who has stage four lung cancer and has said she would consider assisted dying, hailed the “historic” move. The TV presenter said: “The current law is cruel, complicated and causes terrible suffering to vulnerable people.”

The Bill would require two doctors – including one with no prior relationship with the patient – to confirm the person is terminally ill and also has the capacity to request an assisted death. In addition, there would be a waiting period of two weeks for a patient to reflect on their decision before they are given the medication needed for an assisted death, which they would have to be able to take themselves.

Opponents of the legislation have said they fear it would see the lives of people who are ill or disabled being “devalued”, with the Bishop of Paisley John Keenan branding it is a “dangerous idea”.

MSPs will likely vote on the new plans later this year. It is the third time Scottish politicians have considered the issue, with the last two attempts to change the law having been defeated. It was last debated at Holyrood in 2015.

Assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to being charged with murder or other offences. Keir Starmer has committed to holding a free vote on the issue in Parliament within five years if he wins the general election.

Some 76% of the 14,038 people who took part in a consultation on Mr McArthur’s plans fully support such a change in the law, with another 2% partially supporting it. Ms McArthur said he is “confident” the Scottish Parliament will back his Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill when it comes before it for a vote, adding “robust safeguards” are included.

“Our current laws on assisted dying are failing too many terminally ill Scots at the end of life,” he said. “Too often, and despite the best efforts of palliative care, dying people are facing traumatic deaths that harm both them and those they leave behind. “Polling has consistently shown overwhelming public support for assisted dying, and now I believe that politicians are catching up with where the public has been for some time.”

Dame Esther said: “I want to congratulate the Scottish Parliament for prioritising this debate so that they can carefully consider this crucial issue and scrutinise this historic assisted dying Bill. I have received dozens of letters from people describing the agonising deaths of those they loved. This is literally a life and death issue, and I believe terminally ill patients like me need and deserve the right to choose this option if our lives become intolerable.”

Ex-nurse Patricia Donoghue from Glasgow, who is a supporter of My Death, My Decision, said her husband Kevan suffered for three weeks in the lead up to his death from a rare bile duct cancer. “I can’t change what happened to Kevan, but I want it to change for others in the future,” she said. “People are suffering and having a horrible time of it, all being made worse by this cruel law. You can’t sit on the fence with this issue, it needs to change.”

But Bishop Keenan said the Bill “attacks human dignity and introduces a dangerous idea that a citizen can lose their value and worth”. “Assisted suicide sends a message that there are situations when suicide is an appropriate response to one’s individual circumstances, worries, anxieties,” he said.

“It normalises suicide and accepts that some people are beyond hope. Furthermore, assisted suicide undermines trust in doctors and damages the doctor-patient relationship. In countries where assisted suicide is legal, there is evidence that vulnerable people, including the elderly and disabled, experience external pressure to end their lives.”

Dr Gillian Wright, a former palliative care registrar who is part of the Our Duty of Care campaign, also spoke out against the proposals. “We do understand that there is suffering at the end of life, but this should drive us as a society not to provide assisted suicide, but instead well-funded, accessible, high-quality palliative care for all,” she said.