18 police and crime commissioners call for inquiry into current law on assisted dying
18 police and crime commissioners have this week written to the Secretary of State for Justice, calling for an inquiry into the impact of the current law on assisted dying. This comes just weeks after Durham Police and Crime Commissioner Ron Hogg announced his support for a change in the law on assisted dying, having been diagnosed with terminal motor neurone disease this July.
In a joint letter sent yesterday to the Rt Hon Robert Buckland MP, the signatories express their concerns about the blanket ban on assisted dying and its impact on terminally ill people, their families and the police officers tasked with investigating potential breaches of the law:
“Most recently, great-grandmother Mavis Eccleston was acquitted by a jury after being charged with murder for helping Dennis, her husband of 60 years, to end his own life rather than suffer any further agony from advanced bowel cancer. Earlier this year, 76-year-old Ann Whaley was investigated by police for booking travel to and accommodation in Switzerland for her husband, Geoff, who had arranged an assisted death at Dignitas in order to avoid a prolonged, traumatic end from motor neurone disease. The cost of these investigations - financial, emotional and societal - cannot be easily dismissed.
“We believe it is time for a renewed look at the functioning of the existing law on assisted dying. While there are clearly differences of opinion as to whether or how the law should change, we contend that the law is not working as well as it could and seek an inquiry to confirm that.”
Sarah Wootton, Chief Executive of Dignity in Dying, said: “We welcome this letter and are pleased to have police and crime commissioners’ support for a new investigation into the functioning of the current law. It is clear that the blanket ban on assisted dying is not working for dying people, for their families, or for the dedicated public servants who must enforce it.
“We all agree that vulnerable people must be protected, but that is not happening under the status quo. The ban on assisted dying merely drives the practice behind closed doors and abroad, with seriously ill people often ending their lives prematurely for fear of becoming too ill to act. There is also a scattergun approach to enforcing the law. Either there is either no scrutiny at all, meaning potential safeguarding opportunities are being missed, or loving family members are criminalised for acts of compassion and are forced to endure distressing and intrusive investigations at great cost to the public purse.
“When half of police and crime commissioners across the country recognise that a law is not working, law-makers have a duty to listen. It is time for a Ministry of Justice-led inquiry into the blanket ban on assisted dying.”
