Earlier today I spoke in the the House of Commons and voted for the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. I have long been a supporter of this long overdue social reform, having witnessed first-hand the cruelty and immense sadness a terminal diagnosis brings, having watched both my grandparents suffer with inflictions of this kind.
Voting for the status quo or against the Bill will not solve anything and it most certainly won’t help the one Brit every week taking the stressful and lonely journey to Switzerland for an assisted death. This Bill is not about shortening life, but it is about shortening death.
However, I do recognise the profound implications of this legislation and the legitimate concerns on both sides of ensuring appropriate safeguards, so I will continue to scrutinise this Bill as it makes its way through the House of Lords.
