from Christian Today
Right To Life UK has condemned the surge in deaths caused by assisted suicide in the Australian state of Victoria as it called for a sustained effort to improve palliative care in Britain.
The pro-life group has said it aims to make the very idea of assisted suicide “unthinkable”.
In September the House of Commons voted against a proposal to legalise assisted suicide by 286 to 270. That vote, described as a “victory for hope, compassion and life” by Right To Life, was all the more extraordinary considering that almost exactly the same politicians had voted in favour of a near identical bill just a year before, by 314 to 291.
Despite the apparent victory, Right To Life warned that the fight was not over, noting that pro-assisted suicide group Dignity in Dying has pledged to keep lobbying for the legalisation of assisted suicide.
Indeed, Labour’s Lord Falconer has made legalising the controversial measure something of a pet project for more than two decades. There have been at least 10 attempts to get some form of medically assisted suicide onto the books since 2000.
Right To Life said, “We want to build a United Kingdom where assisted suicide is seen as unnecessary – and where legalising it is seen as unthinkable.
“The first part of that work is a sustained push for universal access to high-quality palliative, hospice and social care. No one should feel driven towards assisted suicide because they cannot get the care and support they need.”
The group pointed to the Australian state of Victoria as a stark warning of what can happen when assisted suicide is legalised.