Achi news desk-
Humza Yousaf, Douglas Ross and Anas Sarwar have all said they do not support assisted dying while former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said this week she was “swinging against” voting for the bill .
Ms Slater, however, said the issue was something she “believes is important” as “a matter of principle in terms of body autonomy”.
Her co-convenor Patrick Harvie led a previous attempt to pass an aid-in-dying bill at Holyrood, taking over from SNP MSP Margot Macdonald who drafted the bill in 2012.
Liam McArthur, the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament who introduced the current bill, has said that the political tone has changed in favor of aid in dying and that “robust safeguards” are included in the proposals.
Ms Slater said: “It’s something I think is important.
“I think it is a matter of principle in terms of the body’s autonomy.
“I myself have not been touched by this. My parents are still gone, and I haven’t had the experience of watching a loved one die.
“I haven’t had the experience myself of experiencing a terminal illness, so I’m very interested in hearing people’s life experiences during that debate so I can understand the issues better.”
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Proposed legislation would make it legal for a terminally ill person who meets the criteria to receive medical assistance to end their life.
Those requesting assisted dying must be aged 16 and over and have lived in Scotland for at least 12 months, as well as having a GP registered in Scotland.
Two doctors would have to be satisfied that the patient’s condition is terminal and that the decision to end their life is made independently.
There would also be a reflection period of 14 days between the request and receiving the medicine.
The death certificate would not record suicide but rather the terminal illness, to help reduce the stigma associated with assisted dying.
For those opposed to assisted dying, native Canadian Ms Slater has become a salutary story of how the eligibility criteria could be controversially widened.
When medically assisted death (MAID) was first introduced, it was only allowed for terminally ill Canadians but in 2019 a court ruled that restricting access to that category of applicant was unconstitutional.
Federal lawmakers then expanded the existing laws to include people with chronic conditions and have been under pressure to expand even further to include mental illness.
Canada now has one of the highest assisted death rates in the world, with doctors assisting 4.1% of deaths.
However, Ms Slater pointed out that the proposed Scottish legislation is based on the model used in Oregon, in the United States, and in Europe.
He said: “I have not followed Canadian politics but I intend to fully support Liam McArthur’s bill.
“I realize that the Scottish approach is much more similar to the European approach to this rather than the North American approach.
“And I think that’s something I’m interested in learning more about. It’s going to be serious and have hard arguments.
“But I’m looking forward to those debates because I’m looking forward to hearing more points of view.”
Mr Harvie described being “flattered and a bit horrified” when Margot McDonald, who died on April 4, 2014, asked him to be the second member in charge of her bill.
He said: “She was very aware at that time that she probably wasn’t going to be there to make it happen.
“And that’s why she needed to ask someone to take that role.
“I felt that as a very heavy responsibility for her personally, but also for the issue – for the very large number of people who had worked very hard time and time again to try to bring proposals before Senedd Scotland.”
The measure failed to gain a majority and was defeated.
Mr Harvie added: “I get the feeling that there has been a change. Not necessarily in public opinion, because I think public opinion has always been ahead of politicians on this.
“But you get the sense that there has been a change in the political landscape and a willingness to talk seriously about making this happen, and we need to be really open to the concerns that people have.
“No one should ever want anyone to feel pressured into making a decision that they genuinely wouldn’t want to make on their own terms.”
The MSP pointed to statistics which show that the majority of people who apply for assisted suicide and are granted permission to commit suicide end up not exercising that right.
He said: “Knowing that they are in control is the most powerful thing.
“I think we need to make sure that we support every witness and every member of the public who wants to share their personal perspective on it, to do so and to really hear and listen to all those views.
“But I feel there is more change in the political landscape in the direction of supporting the proposals.
“So I wish him well with it.”
Asked whether Scots can have confidence in the Scottish Government to draft and the Scottish parliament to scrutinize legislation, given concerns about the soundness of several recent pieces of legislation, Mr Harvie said: “I hope so.”
He added: “However, we will surely have political disagreements on some things, as all parties do.
“Liam McArthur is the type of person as an individual who has a very balanced and calm approach to a great many issues.
“He’s not a divisive character, a firebrand on anything, so I think it’s a good pair of hands for this particular piece of legislation to be in and he seems to be getting out of his way to make sure that this is a respectable and respectful person. a calm and thoughtful debate, and that’s what he deserves.”
