A Scottish Parliament committee has found that a bill shortly to come before Holyrood to legalise assisted suicide contains “significant flaws” and “softens cultural perceptions of suicide”.
A significant majority of committee members have now declared themselves against the proposed legislation, which would allow those with terminal or life-shortening illnesses to seek help to end their own lives.
The health and sport committee has declined to make any recommendations in connection with the bill and will allow MSPs to vote on it according to individual conscience.
The committee did, however, find that the bill’s language was ambiguous and that it would need “significant amendment should it progress through the parliamentary scrutiny process”. Pro-life campaigners have welcomed criticisms in the report and have called on MSPs to vote against the bill, which will come before Parliament for debate before a 29 May deadline.
A leading pro-life activist has described the bill as “not fit for purpose”. Gordon Macdonald of Care Not Killing expressed delight that the Holyrood committee had agreed the bill was flawed and that a majority of the committee was now openly opposed to it.
Mr Macdonald described the bill as “poorly thought out” and “badly drafted”, and said that the errors in drafting are “likely to prevent it being enacted”.
Green MSP Patrick Harvie expressed disappointment that the committee appeared not to have noted responses made to criticism of the bill as currently drafted. Mr Harvie has stewarded the bill since the death of Margo Macdonald, who had campaigned for assisted dying.
Loading ...
