"I like it when some bishop says on the radio: It's the thin end of the wedge,' and I think yes, it is the thin end of the wedge, because certain groups are missing from it, such as those with dementia. It has to be physical pain. My guess is that if we pushed it through with all the protections around it of doctors and dispassionate people making judgments we'll look back on this and think, Why did we ever let people die in agony?'"
"Gradually, yeah, I would. But I think it does require a lot more thought and the idea of living wills. My mother used to say to me: If I ever become really terrible, I'd like you to finish me off.' But of course, that's to commit murder as things stand. Imagine standing up in court and saying: Well, she did say when we were on the beach 20 years ago '"
"McEwan spoke about dementia's impact on his family his mother Rose had dementia, as well as his brother-in-law and another close family member. By the time my mother was well advanced and could not recognise anyone, she was dead. She was alive and dead all at once. It was a terrible thing. And the burden on those closest is also part of the radioactive damage of it all."
More than 1,000 amendments have been tabled against the assisted dying bill, prompting allegations of filibustering and making passage before the end of the parliamentary session in May appear unlikely. The bill would legalise assisted dying in England and Wales for adults with less than six months to live. Proposals call for gradual extension to include dementia sufferers, accompanied by strict safeguards such as living wills, medical oversight, and independent judgments. Personal experiences with dementia are described as leaving people alive and dead and imposing severe, radioactive burdens on close family members.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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