Contributions
781 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)This is a really important discussion and I am so glad that we are having it—some brilliant points have been made. As someone who has worked with people with anorexia, I am very…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)I agree with the hon. Member to some degree in terms of the legal drafting. I have been advised that the expression “for the avoidance of doubt” is not generally used in a Bill if…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Thirteenth sitting)Just to clarify, my understanding is that it is between 600 and 700 people who take their own lives; it is suicide.25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)My hon. Friend is making a powerful point. Does she agree that the reporting and data around assisted dying are fundamental? That is why it is important that, if the law is to…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)In terms of the removal of references to the Equality Act, I was not aware when the Bill was initially drafted that cancer is actually classed as a disability. Given the fact that…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)The concepts of a mental disorder and a disability are well understood, and those terms are well used. In the eyes of the law, we would not need to provide a definition of those…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)My hon. Friend talked about the stories that we heard on Second Reading. Does she acknowledge, as Dr Sarah Cox from the Association for Palliative Medicine said, that there are…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)I do worry about the lack of faith in our professionals. We have medical practitioners on the Committee and we have heard stories of the very good practice that happens, so it…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Twelfth sitting)But it does not say that at all. It actually says that they have to refer, and that they have to consult with other people. That is part of the process. That is exactly what…25 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)I welcome the broader debate, but I am very conscious that the amendment does not actually use the word “burden”. It talks about someone “acting for their own sake rather than for…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)I am not sure whether the hon. Member contacted me to meet—if she did, I am very sorry; I must have missed that message—but other members of the Committee and Members of the House…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)Surely, as I thought I heard the hon. Gentleman say on the radio yesterday morning, it is better to have expertise of this nature involved in the process. On the issue of coercion…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)Very few cases are as straightforward as that, and that is where conversations with doctors and professionals are really important. I think it was the doctor from California who…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)We are oversimplifying a complex situation and a difficult conversation. We have talked about coercion and pressure a lot. If someone says, “I just want it all to be over, because…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)I, again, refer the hon. Gentleman to my previous points; we are oversimplifying a really complex conversation, which would take into account lots of different factors for each…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)I am certainly not being dishonest, which is the hon. Lady’s implication. I refer back to the complexity of those conversations, and the fact that safeguards will need to be in…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)It is really important to remember that, at the moment, there is no legal framework that checks terminally ill people’s reasons for ending their lives or shortening their deaths.…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)Returning to the amendments before us, I will try to keep my comments brief, as we have had a thorough debate this afternoon. On amendments 95 to 104, I have spoken to the right…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)This point is about training, and so about hearing from the right people when it comes to the training of professionals. It is important that we ensure that the Secretary of State…12 Feb 2025HANSARDTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (Eleventh sitting)Sorry, what was your question?12 Feb 2025