An Angus Reid Institute Poll, published on 10 November, has revealed that a majority of Canadians have serious concerns about the expansion of assisted dying.

69% of Canadians are concerned that the expansion of Medical Assistance in Dying Law (MAID) will result in mentally vulnerable persons choosing suicide.

65% worry that the expansion of MAID might result in the disabled and the elderly feeling pressured into choosing death so not to be a burden.

62% fear that such legislation will mean that the health system will neglect long-term health care solutions. 

Similarly, Roger Foley, 45, who suffers from an incurable neurological disorder, recently spoke to Canadian MPs, warning them that MAID will lead to vulnerable patients such as himself being pressured into assisted dying, as reported by SPUC.

Assisted dying would be “easier to access than safe and appropriate disability supports to live”, Mr Foley said, and he and others would accordingly feel “coerced” into opting for assisted suicide.

SPUC comment

A SPUC spokesperson said: “Canadians are justly concerned about Bill C-7, which, if passed, will expand access to MAID to include the disabled and the chronically ill. Indeed, a report published in July revealed that 34% of Canadians killed by assisted suicide in 2019 said they feared being a burden on family and carers.

“The fears of Canadians, including Mr Foley, are well-founded and should be taken seriously. As the Canadian Physicians’ Alliance Against Euthanasia recently stated, if Bill C-7 is passed it will lead to the destruction ‘of a Canadian society that genuinely values and cares for its most vulnerable members’.”

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