Britain under fire over failure to enact assisted suicide laws

THE British Government was yesterday accused of abdicating its responsibilities towards vulnerable members of society by failing to implement laws on assisted suicide.

The Voluntary Euthanasia Society said that by not introducing legislation, it was “inevitable” that more people, including those who were not terminally ill, could become so-called “suicide tourists.”

Fresh concerns have been raised about assisted suicide following the deaths of British couple Robert and Jennifer Stokes, who died in Switzerland on April 1.

It was reported yesterday that the couple, who were 59 and 53, had travelled to Swiss city of Zurich from their home in Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, after contacting the charity Dignitas. The organisation helps the terminally ill to end their lives via loopholes in Swiss law.

While Dignitas officials insist documentary medical evidence is provided to prove that a patient’s condition is incurable, Mr and Mrs Stokes were said not to have been terminally ill.

Mr Stokes is reported to have had epilepsy and undergone brain surgery to cure chronic depression, while his wife is believed to have had arthritis that affected her spine.

Voluntary Euthanasia Society chief executive Deborah Annetts described the couple’s case and others like them as “horrifying.”

She said: “It’s very important that people think about the implications. Doctors also have an obligation to outline options such as palliative care. Nobody sat down with them and said you could have this, that and the other. That’s the direct result of having no legislation in place.”

Asked if publicity surrounding Dignitas and people like the Stokes could lead to an increase in people travelling abroad to end their lives, she added: “It’s inevitable. “Unless the government acts and puts in place laws on assisted suicide, more and more people will die this way. That’s an abdication of responsibility towards the most vulnerable members of society.”

Last week, inquests into the deaths of Mr and Mrs Stokes were opened and adjourned to a date to be fixed pending the outcome of toxicology tests. The issue of voluntary euthanasia has been increasingly highlighted in recent years with the case of Diane Pretty and Reginald Crew, both of whom suffered from terminal motor neurone disease.

Mrs Pretty, from Luton, Bedfordshire, lost a lengthy legal battle to allow her husband, Brian, to help her “die with dignity.” She died in May last year aged 43. Mr Crew, 74, from Liverpool, however, contacted Dignitas and travelled to Switzerland in January, ending his life with an overdose of barbiturates.

Police said they would not be taking further action against his widow for helping him travel to Zurich.