Right to die debate

DEBATE on voluntary assisted dying laws is set to start in Tasmania’s House of Assembly this week.

The legislation to allow people suffering from a terminal illness to choose to end their life has passed the Legislative Council.

But a vote on the Bill in the Lower House is not expected until next year.

DEBATE around voluntary assisted dying will commence in the Lower House this week, with one MP firm on not supporting “physician- assisted suicide”.

The Bill to allow people suffering from a terminal illness to choose to end their life passed the Legislative Council this month and must now pass the House of Assembly.

Bass Liberal MP Michael Ferguson said he had been given the Bill only in recent weeks, with Premier Peter Gutwein announcing an independent inquiry into the legislation and its consequences.

“Typically Bills will come into the Lower House and be reviewed in the Legislative Council — this is exactly the other way around,” he said.

“What we’re going to be doing, as the Premier has announced, is at least making sure that members of the House of Assembly can express their view and get it on the record, say what they need to say.

“We’ll commence the debate this week immediately after the budget has passed the House of Assembly. It’ll be presented again for a final vote after the inquiry has reported.”

Mr Ferguson said he would not support the legislation.

“I can understand that there are cases where people can receive better care, but I don’t believe in physician- assisted suicide,” he said.

“In a conscious- vote environment we need to be able to respect each other’s different point of view on this.

“I do believe a Bill that crosses the line of the taking of a life of one person by another, or assisting in a suicide, is a line that I’m absolutely not prepared to cross.”

Mr Ferguson said legislation around minimum jail sentences for those convicted of child sex offences would be debated during the week starting December 8.

“This provides minimum sentences of at least four years of people found guilty of these horrendous crimes,” he said.

“Any sexual offence against children is abhorrent.

“The difficulty we have in Tasmania is unlike other states we still haven’t been able to change the law to make sure we have a minimum jail term.

“There is a new opportunity and an absolute demand by the Tasmanian community and the Tasmanian Liberal government.”