A YouGov poll has found that over half of Britons fear that vulnerable people will be pressured into ending their lives if assisted suicide is legalised in the UK.
56 per cent of the British public fear that it is likely that people would opt for assisted suicide because they believe they are a burden, the poll found.
The poll, commissioned by The Salvation Army, surveyed 2,003 adults on 14/15 April. It comes as Westminster MPs and Scottish MSPs prepare to debate and vote on two separate assisted suicide bills later this month.
Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of poll respondents believed that there would be a higher risk of elderly people being pressured into assisted suicide, if it is legalised.
Similarly, 58 per cent stated that the disabled would be at higher risk.
Over half (55 per cent) of polled adults who supported assisted suicide laws also believe that disabled people will be at higher risk of being pressured into taking their lives.
Those agreeing in principle with assisted suicide also worried that the elderly (60 per cent) and people with mental health issues (53 per cent) would be at increased risk.
63 per cent said that assisted suicide should not be legal for people who list being a burden on family as a chief reason to die.
55 per cent stated that assisted suicide should not apply in cases like anorexia where mental illness affects a person physically.
43 per cent of people killed by assisted suicide in the US state of Oregon in 2023 said not wanting to be a burden on loved ones was a reason to die, while 8 per cent said they wanted to die because of the cost of their medical expenses.
In Canada in 2022, almost half of assisted suicides cited being a burden on family, friends or caregivers as influencing their decision.
Poll reveals “deep unease” about assisted suicide
Paul Main of The Salvation Army said that “this survey shows that the public are concerned that the legislation will not provide… relief and dignity in their final days…
“Beneath widespread sympathy lies a deep unease about how such legislation could expose the most vulnerable to harm, coercion, or abandonment.
“Though this legislation stems from a sincere desire to alleviate suffering, we are urging MPs to vote against the Bill.
“We are gravely concerned that the Bill inadvertently creates a two-tier system of death.
“It is terrifying to face terminal illness without palliative care but if you cannot access the support that can help alleviate suffering, you may feel you have no choice but to ask for an assisted suicide.”
MP Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill to legalise assisted suicide for terminally ill adults with six months to live is set to be voted on 16 May.
A similar bill for Scotland will be debated and voted on by MSPs on 13 May.
Responding to the YouGov poll, Labour MP Jess Asato said: “This polling demonstrates that the public are rightly concerned about the consequences for vulnerable people who may be harmed by this legislation…
“Public support for assisted dying has always been conditional on protecting the most vulnerable from abuse within any new regime.
“The current Bill fails this test for numerous groups of people including those with eating disorders, domestic abuse victims, and older people who may feel they are a burden on their family.”
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