"Guernsey and Jersey should work together on assisted dying law"

Friday 18 October 2024

Guernsey will soon debate whether to allow assisted dying with the politician championing the change keen the island works with Jersey to bring it about.

Earlier this week a bill to legalise assisted dying for terminally ill adults in England and Wales was formally introduced in the House of Commons.

The States of Jersey agreed in May plans to allow assisted dying for those with a terminal illness “causing unbearable suffering”, a law that could be in force by the summer of 2027. 

Legislation is also progressing in the Isle of Man.

“The first reading of the private member’s assisted dying Bill in Westminster this week is a further milestone,” said Deputy Gavin St Pier.

“The next will be a substantive vote on its second reading on 29 November. Public opinion has been firmly behind law change for many years.  

“When law change comes, it will give so many terminally ill individuals real comfort to know they have options at the end of their lives, even though the vast majority will not choose to access an assisted death for themselves.  The right to choice includes all those who have personal, ethical or faith based objections.  These must be respected but also they should not be imposed on those who do not have those objections.  

“I have made it clear that I always intended to bring a Requete on this issue before the end of this States’ term and that remains my intention.  

“There will be no surprises. It will be based on the policy options which were presented to the Assembly in Jersey.  These were the product of a citizen’s assembly, considerable policy research and an ethical review.  

“We do not need to reinvent the wheel.  It seems obvious to me too that the two islands should be pooling their resources in drafting the appropriate legislation.”

The introduction of the Bill in England and Wales sparked debate among supporters and opponents.

Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, said the bill was “dangerous” and that in “every other place where it’s been done, [it] has led to a slippery slope”.

Dr Gordon Macdonald, the chief executive of Care Not Killing, said the bill “sends a dog-whistle message to the terminally ill, vulnerable, elderly and disabled people, especially those on low or fixed incomes, that their lives are worth less than others”.