Legalised suicide would 'turn care givers to life takers' - Shrewsbury bishop

In a pastoral letter issued just days after the Assisted Dying Bill received its first reading in the House of Lords, Shrewsbury bishop, the Rev Mark Davies, warned that the proposals would turn “care-givers into life-takers”.

The bishop reminded his congregation that the Commandment “you shall not kill” had guided British society from its inception.

He said a new law which permitted the killing of patients would corrupt the medical profession and, by crossing “a moral line”, would create the conditions for incremental advances towards "horrific instances of euthanasia".

On Monday the bishop also made an appeal “to everyone who values the sanctity of human life and wants the best care and support for the sick and the dying to oppose this latest proposal to force our society across the line from caring to killing”.

Bishop Davies said: “A mere six years after parliament overwhelmingly rejected legalisation for assisted suicide, citing the need to protect the vulnerable, we are faced with a new attempt to make those who have always been ‘care-givers’ into ‘life-takers’.

“I write to alert you to the struggle which lies ahead in defence of the value of human life and the moral vision which has long underpinned the care of the sick. However limited the first proposals may be, a moral line would be crossed if those in our medical and nursing professions are called to assist in killing patients; and a shield is removed from the sick, the aged and those nearing the end of their lives.

“The parliamentary battle over the issue is expected in the autumn. We cannot be complacent over what is at stake should the softening of opposition in government and parliament and the proactive campaigning in the media succeed in lulling consciences. If there were any doubt about the consequences, we have only to look at what has happened elsewhere. Even though definite legal safeguards were initially guaranteed, countries that compromised the sanctity of human life in this way have seen euthanasia and assisted suicide extended to ever new groups. These now include those suffering from mental illness and even children.”

Sarah Wootton, chief executive of Dignity in Dying, which has supported the efforts of Shropshire resident Noel Conway to battle for assisted dying to be legalised, said Bishop Davies is among a 'shrinking minority' in his opposition to the law.

She said: “Bishop Davies is right that the true measure of a society is how we safeguard and care for the most vulnerable. That is precisely why a change in the law on assisted dying is so necessary.

“Under the blanket ban on assisted dying, those nearing the end of their lives are forced to choose between suffering intolerably against their wishes, starving to death in order to hasten their end, being sedated so they are completely unaware of their final moments, ending their own lives at home or travelling at huge expense to Switzerland. These are the unimaginable options that Shropshire man Noel Conway must contemplate; the reasons why he has spent his last years fighting for a change to this cruel, outdated law.

“Baroness Meacher’s Bill would enable terminally ill, mentally competent adults in their final months the choice to die in a manner, time and place of their choosing, subject to approval by two doctors and a judge. It would offer far more protections and transparency than the current law, is an insurance policy against unbearable suffering as we die, and would enable a more compassionate, person-centred approach to end of life care, regardless of what we might choose for ourselves. That benefits us all.

“Since Parliament last debated prospective legislation, true end-of-life choice has been introduced in states across the US and Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Spain, with proposals being examined in Austria, Germany, Ireland, Jersey and soon Scotland. Doctors views have shifted dramatically, with half now personally supporting law change and a majority calling for their representative bodies to drop their opposition; something the Royal College of Physicians has already done. Parliamentarians are also increasing realising that the status quo simply does not work.

“Bishop Davies is among a shrinking minority, including among religious people – the majority of whom support a safeguarded assisted dying law. The influence of those who seek to curb personal choice and autonomy in the name of religious dogma is rightfully waning. Of course some people don't want assisted dying. They can have their choice. What we want is a choice for all people, including the ones who do want this option. Change is inevitable and Dignity in Dying is proud to lead the fight for Britain’s next great liberal reform.”