Last year I blogged about the commission set up by Lord Falconer on assisted suicide. It was clear from the outset that this commission was fatally flawed, not least because of the pro-assisted suicide stance of almost every member of the committee. Unsurprisingly the collection of evidence and hearings was unlikely to have a major impact given […]
Tag: assisted suicide
William Lee: A question of proportionality?
On Wednesday 25th February Baroness Warnock spoke at the Maudsley Philosophy Group. Her topic was, ‘Assisted Dying: Should the law be changed?’. The Maudsley is a psychiatric hospital in south London which adjoins and collaborates with the Institute of Psychiatry. Baroness Warnock, now in her eighties, is an extraordinarily accomplished person. […]
William Lee on “A Short Stay In Switzerland”
Last night the BBC aired “A Short Stay in Switzerland”, a one-off drama based on the true story of a terminally ill doctor who killed herself in Zurich with the help of Dignitas, an organisation specialising in assisting suicide (read obituary). Assisting a person to commit suicide is illegal in the UK, though there have […]
William Lee and the “I’m lucky to be alive” patient
In early November 2008 a woman in her 30s who lives alone in London decided that she wanted to die. She was depressed. She felt that she only suffered and caused suffering to others, and that she did not deserve to live. Yet from the outside her life seemed fulfilling and successful. A graduate building […]
Ohad Oren on euthanasia, supermarket style
Debbie Purdy, a 45 year old woman with progressive multiple sclerosis, failed in her bid last month to be able to end her life when her excruciating symptoms become unbearable for her. When the time comes, she wants her husband to accompany her to Dignitas, a Swiss clinic, which will prescribe a lethal dose of barbiturates, […]
William Lee on Philip Nitschke
Dr Philip Nitschke, director of the Australian pro-euthanasia group EXIT International, has come to the UK to promote the launch of his ebook ‘The Peaceful Pill Handbook’ – a controversial guide to methods of suicide. The paper version has been banned in Australia and published in New Zealand with some pages blacked out. […]