The UK’s top Catholic bishop urges the faithful to lobby MPs against euthanasia euthanasia

The UK’s most senior Catholic bishop has urged churchgoers to lobby their MPs to oppose proposed changes to euthanasia laws in England and Wales, warning people: “Be careful what you wish for.”

In a letter to be read in churches in his diocese, Cardinal Vincent Nichols said the proposed changes for medical professionals could involve “a slow shift from a duty of care to a duty to kill.”

Labor MP Kim Leadbeater will formally introduce a private member’s bill on the issue to the House of Commons on Wednesday. MPs will vote on the issue in the bill’s second reading on November 29.

Nichols’ letter goes on to say that in countries where euthanasia has been legalized, the circumstances under which it is permitted have “continually expanded.”

He said a change in the law could result in people near death feeling pressured to end their lives to relieve family members of a “perceived burden of care,” to avoid pain or “for the sake of inheritance.” will”.

“The radical change to the law now being proposed risks a slow shift from duty of care to duty to kill for all medical professionals,” he added.

The Archbishop of Westminster continued: “One person’s suffering is not insignificant. It doesn’t destroy that dignity. It is an essential part of our human journey, a journey sustained by the eternal Word of God, Christ Jesus Himself. He brings our humanity to its full glory precisely through the gate of suffering and death.”

Leadbeater said the current euthanasia law was “not fit for purpose” and campaigners described it as “incredibly cruel”.

Earlier this year, before he became prime minister, Keir Starmer said he was in favor of changing the law. He promised TV presenter Esther Rantzen, who has terminal lung cancer and is campaigning on the issue, that if he became prime minister he would ensure there was time in Parliament to debate the issue and allow a free vote . Starmer kept that promise after his election victory in July.

Supporters of changing the law say people who are terminally ill or in severe pain should be able to die with dignity and at a time of their choosing.

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Sarah Wootton, chief executive of Dignity in Dying, said earlier this year: “Euthanasia is a movement whose time has come.” The Prime Minister has reiterated his promise to make time for this debate and dying people will take him to it to hold accountable; You simply don’t have time to wait. As reforms draw ever closer in the Isle of Man, Jersey and Scotland, we are on the brink of historic change in the British Isles.”

Under current law, assisting a person to end their life is a criminal offense in England and Wales, punishable by a maximum sentence of up to 14 years. Efforts to legalize euthanasia are underway in Scotland, the Isle of Man and Jersey.

This is the first time the issue has been debated in the House of Commons since 2015, when an assisted dying bill was defeated.