Assisted dying bill proposed at Holyrood

By Elloise Alexander

Today Liberal Democrat Liam McArthur published a legislation to bring assisted dying for the terminally ill to Scotland. This is the third time that assisted dying has been considered, the last two times the idea was rejected. This time there is a higher chance that the bill will pass as 78% of Scots support the bill.

The bill aims to give people who are terminally ill and people who have less than six months to live a safe and legal way to end their lives on their terms. It’s supposed to be a dignified way for people to have a choice in how they end their lives and choose not to suffer before their death. Supporters of this legislation are in the majority of people who have witnessed family members who have suffered and died in pain.

There are positive and negative aspects to invoking laws such as this, there are concerns over whether there will pressure the terminally ill to end their life themselves. Some think it could be a mental health issue to have a law that openly condones suicide and fears that mentally ill people will seek this treatment.

In the religious community The Catholic Church in Scotland, the Church of Scotland and the Scottish Association of Mosques are all objecting to assisted dying even though death is inevitable in these cases.

But from a human standpoint, it will mean that people won’t need to fear a painful death after their terminal diagnosis and can enjoy their last months as much as they can. In an interview with the BBC Mandie Malcom, a cancer patient who is in support of the legislation, said “I really worry about my death. I worry that I'm going to suffer, horrifically, basically and it does scare me.”

Not all terminally ill people will be eligible to have this treatment as MSP Liam McArthur has set out clear safeguarding rules. The people eligible must have two confirmations from separate doctors that the person is indeed terminally ill, they must be independent enough to request and take the medication themselves. There will be a two-week waiting period from confirmation of request and receiving the medication.

A vote on this legislation is not expected any time soon.