The Assisted Dying Bill that Baroness Meacher reintroduced in Parliament would permit any adult of sound mind with six months or less months to live to take his or her own life, upon a judge's approval. Over the course of the seven-hour-long debate, roughly 60 Peers, doctors, and other experts spoke against the measure.
"This bill facilitates death without reference to those most impacted by it," argued Lord Farmer. "It is an atheist's bill denying God and denying eternity."
"Death must not become the new normal to replace compassionate care of humanity, skewing the very meaning of medicine," Lord Patten contended.
"For me, this bill crosses a rubicund enshrined in centuries of law and medical ethics that every human life is of value," stated Baroness Fraser.
Prime ministers former and present also opposed the measure, as did the archbishop of Canterbury and nearly 1,700 medical professionals. The British Medical Association, however, took a neutral stance.
One question raised in the debate was that of improving palliative care to keep dying patients comfortable until their natural death rather than approving assisted suicide. Proponents of the latter are not expected to give up on the issue.
