Majority of Scots would break law to help loved one’s assisted suicide

MORE than half of Scots say they would consider travelling abroad for an assisted suicide if they were terminally ill – but only one in five could afford the £10,000 cost.

The affordability of assisted suicide is highlighted today in a report by the campaigners Dignity in Dying.

The report, The True Cost: How the UK outsources death to Dignitas, includes a YouGov poll showing that more than two thirds would consider breaking the law to assist a terminally ill loved one to have an assisted death abroad.

Although there is no specific crime of assisting a suicide in Scotland, relatives may be prosecuted for culpable homicide just by accompanying their loved one on the plane or driving them to the airport, helping to arrange the trip or contributing financially.

Dignity in Dying is campaigning for Scotland to introduce laws already in place in Canada and parts of the US and Australia that would give terminally ill patients with less than six months to live the right to be prescribed a fatal dose of medication which they can self-administer.

The report warns the fees charged by Swiss suicide clinics along with travel and accommodation costs are prohibitive, averaging £10,000 but rising to £15,000, and that “the majority of people in the UK cannot afford [it].”

The cost is likely to be higher for Scots, however, as “it is generally cheaper to fly to Basel and Zurich from south-east England than from the rest of England and Scotland”, the report says.

Costs can escalate quickly in Zurich – Europe’s most expensive city in which to live and the third most expensive in the world.

The report states: “One interviewee said that the ‘final meal’ was over £900 for four people.”

Patients also face a “complex trade-off” because they must be physically able to travel and administer the lethal dose of medication unassisted once at the clinic.

This meant giving up quality time with loved ones because they faced “pressure to make the journey before becoming too ill to do so”.

For some of the of 143 Scots surveyed, this was “a sacrifice too far, resulting in them giving up on their attempts to have an assisted death”.

Complex paperwork and the logistical difficulties of obtaining everything from medical records to death or divorce certificates of spouses add an “unwanted burden”, exacerbated by the lack of any support organisations able to offer advice.

Ally Thomson, Director Scotland of Dignity in Dying, said: “By denying terminally ill people the option of an assisted death at home, we are not solving the problem, just outsourcing it to Switzerland – and dying people in Scotland and their families are the ones paying the price.

“Terminally ill people are paying huge sums of money, spending their final months buried in paperwork, being made to feel like criminals and dying earlier than they would have wanted – all in order to have the peaceful, dignified death they want and deserve.”

Amanda Ward, CEO of Friends at the End, said the right should also extend to patients with an incurable condition causing “hopeless and unbearable suffering”.

She added: “The ongoing outsourcing and turning a blind eye to a lack of choice cannot continue. The number of people seeking a peaceful death at a time of their choosing, assured by this method, will only increase as medical advancements keep us alive longer, but that does not necessarily equate with a high quality of life.”

However, Dr Gordon McDonald, of Care Not Killing, said legalising assisted suicide would see some 1500 Scots a year ending their lives prematurely. He added: “Many of these people would be in a very vulnerable situation and feel under pressure to end their lives prematurely.

“The current law provides an important deterrent effect and it should not be changed. Rather than changing the law on assisted suicide, we need to ensure that palliative care is properly funded.”

Turning a blind eye to the issue can’t go on