Assisted dying

A bill proposing assisted dying for the terminally ill will have its second reading in the Lords today.

Lord Joel Joffe’s recommendations would allow doctors to give patients a fatal dose of drugs to self-administer, as is currently the case in the US state of Oregon.

Only those still able to make decisions, suffering unbearably and with less than six months to live would be eligible.

Lord Carlisle has today tabled an amendment to halt the bill's progress, but even if this fails, the highly controversial bill will have a tough time getting through parliament.

The previously neutral Royal College of Physicians has declared itself against the recommendations, although the British Medical Association has shifted from opposition to neutral.

Religious groups and disabled rights groups have also voiced opposition, although a survey for campaign group Dignity in Dying found that 76 per cent of the public supported the proposals.

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