Jess Asato

I did not start this process opposed to the idea of assisted dying, but having worked in the field of domestic abuse, I found myself increasingly concerned about how this Bill would impact on those who are most vulnerable to coercion and abuse. As a Labour MP, I reflected on why I joined the Labour party. It was because of our commitment to protecting the vulnerable and fighting for equality, suspicious of individualism and narrow notions of choice that turn a blind eye to the impact of that choice on others. If I could legislate to create a Bill just for me, I would be tempted by these measures, but I believe my role as an MP is to legislate in the best interests of those who have no voice, whose choices are often limited by poverty, the patriarchy, racism, trauma, ill health, and state and societal failure. We must recognise that if we advance this Bill yet further today, there will be unintended and undesirable consequences, and it is the Bill in front of us that we are voting on today—not the principle, or a distant promise that the other place might fix the holes, but what we know is in, and not in, this legislation. I would like to briefly illustrate the reasons why I believe this Bill will create harm for families across our country. Imagine the scenario of your mother. You were there when Dad used to belittle her. In public, it was jokes putting her down, but in the house, you would hear him say that she was worthless and ugly and would be better off dead. You got out of there as soon as you could, but she would never leave—she loved him, and could not see a life for herself outside of his control. You could see her health deteriorating, but he often stopped her from going to the doctor or reaching out to friends. One day, you get a call from your dad to say, “She’s dead. She got an assisted death.” You worry that she took her life, not because of her illness, but because it was the only way out from the abuse. You fear that your dad made her do it, but there was no chance for you to tell anyone about your concerns, and there is no automatic requirement for an investigation by a coroner. Would you ever be able to prove his malign control now that she is gone? Imagine that you have a brother who has struggled with an eating disorder ever since he entered secondary school. He was sexually abused by a family friend and never received any real support for what he went through, and court backlogs mean that the criminal case is still ongoing. He spends longer and longer watching social media influencers paid by assisted dying companies to advocate for what they call a peaceful end to life. He begins to starve, and doctors withdraw treatment because they claim nothing more can be done. You get a call only a few months after his 18th birthday to tell you that your brother has opted for an assisted death.