The upper house of the UK parliament has today rejected a bill which would have permitted assisted suicide in England and Wales, by 148 votes to 100. Some 90 members of the House of Lords spoke in the debate on the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill, including many medical peers and disabled...

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SPUC relieved at defeat of assisted suicide bill Westminster, -- Lord Joffe's Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill bill was defeated in a vote in the House of Lords today. Some 90 peers participated in the debate, including many medical peers and disabled peers who spoke strongly against the Bill....

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The British government body which regulates artificial reproduction has decided that IVF embryos can be screened for more diseases than at present. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority currently allows screening for inherited conditions such as cystic fibrosis, but yesterday it agreed wi...

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With the UK parliament due on Friday to debate a bill to legalise assisted suicide, nearly three quarters of respondents to a survey of members of the Royal College of Physicians oppose a change in the law. Some 73% of the 5,100 participating members agreed with the following statement: "[We] believ...

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weekly update, 3 to 9 May weekly update, 3 to 9 May The leader of the Anglican communion will oppose Lord Joffe's Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill in the House of Lords on Friday. Most Reverend Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, says that compassion for the seriously ill: "... m...

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The leader of the Anglican communion will oppose Lord Joffe's Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill in the House of Lords on Friday. Most Reverend Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, has a seat in that chamber along with 25 other Church of England clerics. He says that compassion for the ...

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The Catholic Bishop of Nottingham, England, and the Anglican Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham have issued a joint statement opposing Lord Joffe's Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill which seeks to legalise assisted suicide. Rt Rev Malcolm McMahon and Rt Rev George Cassidy write: "While we u...

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A couple in England have asked the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority if they will let doctors select an IVF embryo who, if born, could provide tissue to treat their 20-month-old daughter's diamond blackfan anaemia. Mr and Mrs Charlie Mariethoz of Leicester are raising £40,000 for Charlott...

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Pro-life groups and Catholic leaders in Scotland have condemned the introduction of 'lunchtime abortions' in Scotland. NHS Lothian plans to start a pilot scheme in 2007, offering abortions in outpatient clinics under local anaesthetic. A spokesman for the Catholic Church in Scotland said "The very s...

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weekly update, 26 April to 2 May weekly update, 26 April to 2 May Geoff Hoon MP, Leader of the House, has said that the government will not establish a joint Lords-Commons enquiry into late-term abortions. A enquiry had been requested by the Chairman of the House of Commons' select committee for...

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News, Geoff Hoon MP, Leader of the House, has said that the government will not establish a joint Lords-Commons enquiry into late-term abortions. A enquiry had been requested by the Chairman of the House of Commons' select committee for science and technology Phil Willis, MP for Harrogate and Knar...

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Lords are sent 71,600 letters about assisted dying bill Lords are sent 71,600 letters about assisted dying bill Links to high-resolution pictures of the event are at the foot of the page. Westminster, - Nearly 72,000 letters expressing concern at plans to legalise assisted suicide were delivere...

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News, A proposal to legalise abortion for therapeutic reasons is to be debated by the Nicaraguan National Assembly on Thursday, as part of a Penal Code reform. Last month, Bishop Juan Abelardo, president of the Bishops' Committee on Family Ministry and Dr. Rafael Jose Cabrera, president of the Nic...

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Reliable studies with broad coverage show that the abortion rate in America is declining, despite earlier claims that pro-life legislation in various states was having no effect. The Alan Guttmacher Institute, which works with Planned Parenthood, estimated that abortions fell by 1.6% in 2001 and 200...

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The Australian newspaper The Age has published an article which supports a government initiative to fund a pregnancy counselling helpline for women who want to continue their pregnancy. Nicholas Tonti-Filippini argues that critics of the scheme such as Reproductive Choice Australia, who want the hel...

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News, The Australian newspaper The Age has published an article which supports a government initiative to fund a pregnancy counselling helpline for women who want to continue their pregnancy. Nicholas Tonti-Filippini argues that critics of the scheme such as Reproductive Choice Australia, who want...

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News, More than 150 SPUC supporters took part in a pro-life witness in Parliament Square, London, on Saturday. They listened to speakers giving testimony to the pain and damage which abortion had done them. They gave a message of hope - that help is available to help women avoid abortion as well a...

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More than 150 SPUC supporters took part in a pro-life witness in Parliament Square, London, on Saturday. They listened to speakers giving testimony to the pain and damage which abortion had done them. They gave a message of hope - that help is available to help women avoid abortion as well as for th...

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weekly update, 19 to Weekly Update, 19 to Comments on life-related issues by Carlo Maria Cardinal Martini, the retired archbishop of Milan, in an Italian newspaper, have attracted widespread attention in both the Catholic and secular media. [L'espresso, 21 April ] Some reports interpret Cardi...

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A Dutch man has been given a 15-month gaol sentence for having helped a friend to commit suicide. Ad van Dijck suffered from obsessive compulsive neurosis and had repeatedly expressed a wish to die. A. de G. (the source does not give his full name) procured lethal doses of heroin and methadone for v...

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