Nearly 3,000 patients in Britain were illegally helped to die by doctors last year, while approximately one third of all British deaths during the year were hastened using drugs, new research has suggested.
In a stinging rebuke to the Bush administration, the US Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that the US attorney-general cannot use federal drug laws to try to stop the right-to-die movement.
At the BMA’s Annual Representative Meeting in June 2005, there was an open debate on assisted dying followed by a vote on three options. These were (a) to reaffirm BMA opposition to physician assisted suicide and euthanasia; (b) to withdraw opposition to assisted dying, recognising the law is primarily a matter for society and for Parliament but press for robust safeguards if legal change occurred; (c) to support an open and transparent system that allowed terminally ill competent patients to receive assisted dying within robust safeguards.
The Advertiser, 09 jan 2006
WHILE many are alarmed by the incursions of freedoms and liberties being made by the Howard Government’s anti-terror laws, last Friday heralded the beginning of another attack on the freedoms and rights of Australians.
Published 09 January 2006 in ‘The Australian’
Board RtD-Europe:
Elke Baezner (President), EXIT Deutsche Schweiz
Deborah Annetts, VES UK
Ans Baars, NVVE
Hugh Wynne, FATE
Karen Sanders, VES UK
Executive support: Rob Jonquière, NVVE
Secretariat: Kitty Jager, NVVE
Editors: Ann Beaton, Rob Jonquière, Kitty Jager
Prepared by Ann Beaton, European Research worker RtD-Europe
(based at the Voluntary Euthanasia Society of England and Wales, London)
The latest edition of the WorldRTD-newsletter can be downloaded here .
Law states life of terminally ill person who does not wish to continue living will not be extended artificially; health minister: ‘This is one of most important laws passed by Knesset. It represents major moral value for terminally ill and their families’
As reported in the last newsletter, the Council of Europe in its debate on 27 April failed to adopt the Marty report on “Assistance to Patients at the end of Life”. Right to Die Europe found this very disappointing, as they had campaigned hard to support Mr Marty with his redrafted report and proposed resolution and there seemed a reasonable amount of support within the Council. However in the course of the debate so many wrecking amendments were passed, that the document would no longer have reflected Mr Marty’s intentions. In the end therefore he also voted against the report.
The Leslie Burke Case has aroused considerable interest in the UK and given rise to long legal judgments, most recently from the Appeal Court. It concerns a patient suffering from a degenerative brain condition who fears that at some future time, when he will perhaps be unable to express his wishes, doctors may decide to terminate his artificial nutrition and hydration (ANH). The appeal was brought by the General Medical Council against various points made by the judge in the initial case. The appeal was allowed, thus rejecting a number of declarations made by the judge.
In June the British Medical Association dropped its opposition to assisted dying. This brings them into line with other medical organisations such as the General Medical Council and the Royal Colleges of Physicians and GPs.
Source: Newsletter RtD-Europe, September 2005.
The House of Lords Report on the Bill for “assisted dying for the terminally ill” is to be debated in the full House in mid-October. In the light of points made in the debate Lord Joffe intends to prepare a redrafted Bill for presentation to the House in the hope that it will be approved and then debated in the House of Commons later in the Session. The VES will again be devoting their resources to helping Lord Joffe in his work.
Source: Newsletter RtD-Europe, September 2005.
