Margo MacDonald bids to change Scotish law on aiding suicide

by Dave Keating | October 30, 2008 at 04:24 am

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Margo MacDonald, a member of the Scottish parliament, has introduced legislation that would make assisted suicide legal in Scotland. The announcement comes a day after a British high court rejected an English petitioners request to clarify the law on whether it is illegal for someone to assist in a suice abroad, in a country where assisted suicide is legal.

MSP MARGO MacDonald today announced plans to bring a Member's Bill to the Scottish Parliament to change the law on assisted suicide.
The Independent Lothians MSP said it should not be a crime to help someone suffering from a condition who wanted to end their life.

She said she hoped to publish a consultation paper by the end of November and wanted to involve as wide a spectrum of people
as possible in discussing the issue.

She said: "The politicians have run a mile from this, but they cannot continue to run. I'm not telling them what they have to believe, we all have our own values and beliefs, but they owe it to their constituents to debate the matter."

The detailed proposals in the Bill will depend on the responses to her consultation. But Ms MacDonald said the thrust was clear. "Where someone suffering from a condition makes their wishes known, that would be respected in law and no-one would be criminalised for helping."