France’s National Assembly has approved an assisted suicide bill that will send people to prison for obstructing a patient’s decision to die.
On 27 May, France’s lower house voted 305 to 199 to legalise assisted suicide for adults suffering from an incurable illness “at an advanced or terminal stage”.
The French National Assembly also approved a measure to impose a two-year prison sentence and a 30,000 euro fine on persons who obstruct the choice of a person seeking assisted suicide.
While there is a conscientious objection clause for medics not wanting to participate in assisted suicide, they would still be obliged by law to refer patients to a willing medical practitioner.
The Bill will now move to the French Senate for approval.
Deputy of the French National Assembly Eddy Caterman voted against the bill and condemned the law on X as “a dangerous slope…
“[It] provides no ethical guarantees, no possible recourse for families, and no real medical alternatives. On the contrary, it risks exposing the most vulnerable to silent pressure.”
Speaking to French Freemasons earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron called assisted suicide a “lesser evil”.
Catholic Archbishop Éric de Moulins-Beaufort condemned Macron’s comments. “No, Mr. President, the choice to kill and to help kill is not the lesser evil”, the prelate posted on X.
He continued: “It is simply death. This must be said without lying and without hiding behind words. Killing cannot be the choice of brotherhood or dignity. It is the choice of abandonment and refusal to help until the end. This transgression will weigh heavily on the most vulnerable and lonely members of our society.”
Before the vote, the Conference of Religious Leaders in France, representing many different faiths, denounced the Bill that “enshrines individual autonomy at the expense of family and social bonds”.
MP Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is also seeking to legalise assisted suicide in England and Wales. It is set to be debated and voted on at Third Reading by MPs on 13 June (or possibly 20 June).
During the Committee stage, an American doctor who oversees assisted suicide in California said it should be a “felony” for loved ones to “interfere with a patient’s right to make this choice [to die]”
Dr. Ryan Spielvogel also complained that California hadn’t already made it illegal. “I think that was a lost opportunity”, he said. Dr. Spielvogel had previously accused families of trying to “bully” loved ones out of opting for assisted suicide.
A recent YouGov poll found that 56 per cent of the British public fear it is likely that people will opt for assisted suicide because they believe they are a burden.
In Canada in 2022, almost half of people cited being a burden on family, friends or caregivers as influencing their decision to choose assisted suicide. Over 15,000 Canadians were killed by Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) in 2022.
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