Tory grandee warns assisted dying bill could turn NHS into 'national death service'

A former senior cabinet minister has become the latest political grandee to oppose the assisted dying bill, warning that it could turn the National Health Service into “a national death service”.

- DAVID MADDOX, ARCHIE MITCHELL

Liam Fox, who is a practising doctor and served as shadow health secretary for more than four years, believes it would be impossible to prevent “the slippery slope scenario” of the bill being expanded beyond terminal illness, as he described the safeguards contained in the legislation as “false”.

His warning reflects concerns among the wider public, highlighted in polling seen by The Independent, which shows that 50 per cent do not believe the NHS is in a fit state to administer assisted dying.

It came as three former prime ministers – Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss – united to oppose the bill, which is set to be debated tomorrow, and as former attorney general Dominic Grieve warned that it would breach the rule of law.

Writing for The Independent, Dr Fox said: “As a doctor who became a politician, I believe that some of the so-called safeguards around this legislation are completely false. For example, the idea that the conditions set down in the bill cannot be altered in future, preventing the ‘slippery slope’ scenario, is just untrue. In our political system, no parliament can bind its successor, and so any future changes to widen the scope of the law would be entirely possible.”

While the bill’s sponsor, Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, has insisted her safeguards are “the strictest in the world”, Dr Fox based his concerns on what has happened in countries that have already introduced assisted dying.

He said: “We can see the potential dangers we will face by considering the Canadian experience. In 2016, Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) was made legal in Canada for the terminally ill. In 2021, however, the requirement for death to be ‘reasonably foreseeable’ was removed; in addition, the extension to include people with mental illness has been approved in principle, and is due to come into effect in 2027.