The British Medical Association Must Not Abandon Its Long-Standing Opposition to Assisted Suicide

Jun 18, 2016 by Jill

PETITION from CitizenGo:

The British Medical Association (BMA) is holding its Annual Representative Meeting (19-23 June) in Belfast and assisted suicide lobby group ‘Dignity in Dying’ (formerly the Voluntary Euthanasia Society) are attempting to hijack the meeting to pressure the BMA to drop its current and longstanding position opposing physician-assisted suicide

This is in spite of the strong parliamentary rejections of assisted suicide last year when the Marris-Falconer ‘Assisted Dying’ Bill was debated in the House of Commons (330-118) and the Harvie-MacDonald Assisted Suicide (Scotland) Bill was debated in the Scottish Parliament (82-36). The majority of elected representatives rightly recognised the danger that this kind of legislation poses to the most vulnerable in our society as many will inevitably feel that they are a burden to be removed through an assisted suicide.

Above all though, doctors should exist to assist us to live and not to die. With excellent palliative care options, research finds that that the vast majority of people do not wish to kill themselves. This is clearly where the focus of the BMA should lie.

Medical opinion is currently strongly opposed to assisted suicide, in part due to their recognition of the adverse effect that it would have on the most vulnerable in our society: the Royal College of General Practitioners (2014, following ‘one of the most comprehensive consultations the College has ever undertaken’), the Royal College of Physicians (London) (2014, following a survey of fellows and members) and the Association for Palliative Medicine (2015, following a survey) all continue to echo the majority of doctors’ opposition to physician assisted suicide. The BMA should continue to do the same.

Read and sign here