During earlier Parliamentary debates upon Assisted Dying several Peers and MPs expressed their fears that the “safeguards” contained in Bills such as Lord Falconer’s were not strong enough. “Two doctors”, they felt, was not enough. Peers, in particular, were keen that the doctor’s opinions should also be signed off by a High Court Judge. So,… Continue reading New doubts over Judges’ role
News that Sean Davison’s case has now been delayed until June will have been regarded as a mixed blessing by campaigners supporting Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying Bill next Friday. On the one hand, they will be relieved that the case will not be drawing media attention whilst the Bill is, hopefully, making its way through… Continue reading Court delays
Two weeks before the General Election in 1987 David Young, the man appointed to run the Conservatives’ re-election campaign, walked into Margaret Thatcher’s office with a fistful of new polls. They made gloomy reading. The election was going to be close – and might even be lost. The three big helpers of the 1983 campaign… Continue reading Campaign wobbles
Campaigners for a change in the UK law started off with enthusiasm when Kim Leadbeater MP announced that she had selected Assisted Dying as the chosen subject for her forthcoming Private Member’s Bill. Armed with opinion polls showing that more than 75% of the voting public supported such a change, the campaigners thought their task… Continue reading What planet are they on ?
The Times in London and De Volkskrant in Holland are both reporting that the Swiss prosecutor has extended the scope of his enquiry to include the possibility of murder. This report is unconfirmed. The Last Resort and Exit International have both described claims that the first real-life use of the Sarco faced operational problems as… Continue reading London Times reports Sarco investigation
In 2023 Dignitas carried out 250 Assisted Voluntary Deaths (AVDs), of which 40 (16%) were for people who had travelled from the UK. The previous year Dignitas had done 206 AVDs, of which 33 had been from the UK. Pegasos do not release their figures but this website estimates that they take about 280 patients… Continue reading How many will still go to Switzerland ?
More people than ever are trying to buy poisons on the internet. Frequently these are for “self-deliverance” – suicide in other words. In every single case, we believe, the buyers are falling victim to criminal gangs. Any money paid will be lost irretrievably. Philip Nitschke has published a list of the worst offenders. In total… Continue reading Nembutal scams
Under Section 3 of this website – “The Law “ – we have covered the 2019 case of Ninian vs Findlay & others. The case concerned the application of the “Forfeiture Rule” under which no one who has assisted the death of another person can inherit anything from their estate. The Court had ruled that,… Continue reading Forfeiture Rule decision
In the case of Ninian vs Findlay in 2019, the Court ruled that Sarah Ninian could indeed inherit her husband’s £1.8 million estate, even though she had planned their visit to Dignitas and had accompanied him on their trip. This meant that the Court had used its discretion and decided that the “Forfeiture Rule” should… Continue reading Probate delays
The decision by Kim Leadbeater MP to choose Assisted Dying as the subject for her Private Member’s Bill is good news. She came top of the recent MPs’ ballot and her Bill is therefore assured of such Parliamentary time as it may need. It will now also receive priority over the other two Bills currently… Continue reading The Leadbeater Bill
