Contribution
I have never been so popular; it will not last, I know.
I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, for her amendments. I pay tribute to her for her sincere and long-standing commitment to protecting the most vulnerable in society. If we cast our minds back to Second Reading, many of the contributions made and concerns raised were regarding those who are the most vulnerable in our society. I remember at Second Reading being particularly touched by the words of the noble Lord, Lord Rees—he is not in his place now—who raised concerns about the vulnerability of some ethnic-minority communities, particularly those from disadvantaged communities as well.
Let us quickly rush through some of the points. On Amendment 22, which would make prisoners ineligible for end-of-life services as envisaged by the Bill, I completely understand the underlying principle. Many have spoken, rightly, about the vulnerability of prisoners. While for some it might seem wrong, as the noble Lord, Lord Farmer, has suggested, that a prisoner who has a terminal illness may have a way of cutting short their sentence by means of this Bill, as my noble friend Lady Coffey alluded to, others may say “Good riddance”. I also recognise the argument that prisoners with a terminal illness should be treated with the same compassion and care at the end of their lives as other terminally ill people subject to the Bill, as my noble friend Lord Markham recognised.
We also have to recognise some of the concerns over moral hazard. I do not know how large the incidence of this would be. Would it really encourage those who are terminally ill to commit crime? No studies have been done, but I am open to that concern. There is also the idea about higher levels of suicidal ideation, as raised by the noble Baroness, Lady Fox. These are really important points that we have to take account of.
The right reverend Prelate and my noble friend Lord Deben spoke about the pressure of reducing the prison population, while the noble Lord, Lord Carter, spoke about the higher rate of suicide among male prisoners. These are all reflections that should give us cause for concern, and things we should take account of as we consider what we will do between Committee and Report.
I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, for raising the issue of those who are pregnant. As the noble Baroness said, this was not debated in the other place, so I am grateful that the noble Baroness was able to give us the opportunity to debate it. I am also grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Berger, for sharing statistics about expectant mothers. It was important that we heard those stats. I cannot begin to imagine the difficulty an individual in those circumstances may face. I understand the concern that it does not seem right that the safety of an unborn child may be endangered under the provisions in the Bill. I also understand that there might be precedence in other legislation. I wonder what the noble and learned Lord’s reflections on that are, given his expertise.
I note the amendment tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Farmer, on access to this for those who are awaiting trial. Once again, I would be very interested in the noble and learned Lord’s legal experience on whether that seems relevant and should be within this Bill. During the debates on the Mental Health Bill, my noble friend Lady Berridge was assiduous in spotting gaps in legislation or inconsistencies between different Acts. My noble friend has done the same thing here by raising concerns over the vulnerability of those with education, health and care plans. I think this needs further consideration.
I also thank the noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, for her amendments relating to those who are homeless or who live in insecure and temporary accommodation. I welcome the experience of the noble Baroness, Lady Gray. I still remember a conversation I had with one homeless charity that we are all one or two unlucky events or bad decisions away from homelessness. I heard from homeless people who told me that they had a great job and a great family life and that everything was going their way. They lost their job, which then led to them losing their marriage. After incidents of sofa surfing and testing the patience of their friends, they ended up homeless. It could happen to anyone. It is important that we do not dismiss the homeless as people who cannot be bothered or are idle. It could happen to anyone. Any noble Lords who have met those in homeless communities will know that some people had been incredibly successful but, after two or three bad decisions or unlucky things that happened in their life, they suddenly found themselves homeless. They are also judged by the way they look when they are homeless.
I remind all noble Lords that the Bill relates only to those who are suffering from a terminal illness and those who have been given an expectation that they will not live for longer than six months. We have to be very careful that, although we have sympathy for the homeless and prisoners, the Bill relates only to those who have a terminal illness. I know there are concerns that the Bill may be widened beyond that, but that is the debate at this stage. We should be quite clear that we are focusing on those with a terminal illness. So, much like on the question of prisoners and others, I recognise the arguments on all sides, but this is an opportune moment, not only because of time but because of the noble and learned Lord’s legal experience, to hear his reflections—after the Minister, obviously.