Last minute decision
CONDAMINE MP Pat Weir will wait until the morning of the vote on the voluntary assisted dying bill before deciding if he will support it.
Until then, he will canvas the opinion of as many people in his electorate as possible.
“It is the most feedback we have had on any single issue since I have been a member of parliament, and that includes the abortion bill,” Mr Weir said. “It has really surprised me.” A draft of the bill will be considered by the Queensland Cabinet this week where government ministers can add amendments before it moves to a conscience vote in parliament.
Mr Weir’s staff have handed a survey to everyone who contacted his office to gauge their opinion.
“I have been contacted by people from all over the state, but I am only considering the opinion of people who are on the electoral roll and who live inside the seat of Condamine,” he said.
“It does not matter how (the parliament) votes – some people will be happy and others will not be happy.”
Several MPs have already made their stance public, including Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Deputy Premier Steven Miles, both of whom will vote to legalise euthanasia.
Closer to home, Toowoomba South MP and Deputy Leader of the Opposition David Janetzki said he would not support the bill, despite recent polling indicating the majority of his constituents supported euthanasia.
In a statement released yesterday, Mr Janetzki said he was concerned the bill had insufficient protections for the vulnerable and the elderly, and that it would deny medical practitioners and institutions the right to conscientious objection.
He said he also believed the bill “crosses centuries-old ethical thresholds” and did not address underfunding of palliative care in regional Queensland.