19 December 2023 , 11:17
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Dame Esther Rantzen wants a free vote in Parliament on assisted dying to spare families the pain of watching their loved ones suffer - and we want to know what YOU think.
This comes as the Childline founder considers ending her life at the Swiss clinic Dignitas as she battles stage four lung cancer. She has announced that if her treatment doesn’t work, this is a route she might take. Speaking to the BBC, Esther believes a free vote on assisted dying is crucial as she feels it’s "important that the law catches up with what the country wants".
She said: "I have joined Dignitas. I thought, well, if the next scan says nothing’s working I might buzz off to Zurich but it puts my family and friends in a difficult position as they would want to go with me. The police might prosecute them. My family say it’s my choice. I explained to them that I don’t want their last memories of me to be painful. If you watch someone you love having a bad death, that memory obliterates all the happy times."
The practice is currently banned in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. However, it has been legalised in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland and several US states.
Those who oppose assisted dying believe it may lead to people ending their lives out of fear of becoming a burden on family. Dame Esther said she was unsure if she would see her last birthday on June 22, so it has been "very unexpected" that she has made it to the Christmas period.
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She added: "Anything can happen, I live in a forest, a tree can fall on me. I’ve got to drop off my perch for some reason, and I’m 83 damn it, so I should be jolly grateful and indeed am." Dame Prue Leith has also voiced her support for assisted dying after having witnessed her brother David suffer a painful death from bone cancer in 2012.
The Great British Bake Off judge spoke at an event hosted by Dignity In Dying, where she said MPs show a "lack of courage" by failing to legalise the option. Earlier this year, the former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey said assisted dying is an "act of great generosity, kindness and human love" and that changing the law is "profoundly Christian" to stop people suffering.
Writing to the Health and Social Care Committee, he said: "Assisted dying is only for those who show a clear minded and persistent resolution to seek it; that it is within the capabilities of medical science to end intolerable suffering peacefully and that it is an act of great generosity, kindness and human love to help those when it is the will of the only person that matters – the sufferer himself."
Lord Carey’s stance on the topic opposes the official view of the Church of England, who have warned that allowing assisted dying would lead to tens of thousands of elderly people being pressured to end their lives each year. Justin Welby, the current Archbishop of Canterbury, warned in 2021 that a law-change would be "unsafe" and "no amount of safeguards" could protect vulnerable people.
Amid the growing calls for a fresh look at the UK's policy toward assisted dying, we want to know what you think. Vote in our poll to have your say.
The Mirror will also be discussing the topic with you in the comments section below and you can join in! All you have to do is sign up, submit your comment, register your details and then you can take part.