Euthanasia plans brought forward on Jersey

Euthanasia proposals have been brought forward on the island of Jersey following sustained pressure for a change in the law by activists.

The plans, which would legalise both doctor-assisted suicide and euthanasia, have been described as "permissive" by CARE.

If passed, eligibility would extend to people with a terminal illness and people "unbearable suffering" that they feel cannot be alleviated.

In other countries, broad definitions have led to a situation where people with mental health conditions and disabilities end their lives.

In Canada, citizens who cannot access services or whose lives are blighted by poverty have been euthanised by medics.

A spokesperson for CARE commented:

"These plans are alarming and even more permissive than expected given the broad eligibility criteria. If they pass as drafted, people will be able to access assisted suicide and euthanasia on Jersey if they are suffering in a way they think cannot be relieved.

"Jersey, like the UK mainland, should uphold the dignity of all human life and offer help and hope to suffering people, whilst counselling against suicide. The island risks becoming a byword for suicide tourism if these plans go ahead. We will be opposing them with many others."

This week, a senior Roman Catholic Bishop spoke out against assisted suicide proposals before the Scottish Parliament.

Archbishop Leo Cushley of St Andrews and Edinburgh said the term 'assisted dying' is misleading and called for a moral response to suffering:

“In Canada euthanasia was legalized in 2016 with strict limits, applying only to adults who are terminally ill and in exceptional physical pain. Yet within just five years it has been extended to include those with chronic illnesses or disabilities. In Belgium and the Netherlands, the scope of legal euthanasia has been further widened to include people suffering from mental illness and, most alarmingly, this can even apply to teenagers and children".

“Those who are frail and elderly easily think that they are a burden on others and may feel pressurized into asking for help to end their lives. Legalizing euthanasia would send a message across the whole of society that lives which entail physical and mental suffering, or severe physical disabilities, can be considered no longer worth living. This is not only wrong in principle – for no life is worthless – it could also have a terrible and tragic effect on vulnerable individuals."