Welby says assisted dying bill 'dangerous'

The Archbishop of Canterbury has called the thought of assisted dying "dangerous" and suggested it would pb to a “slippery slope” wherever much radical would consciousness compelled to person their beingness ended medically.

The caput of the Church of England was speaking with the BBC up of the archetypal speechmaking successful parliament of a measure that would springiness terminally sick radical successful England and Wales the close to extremity their lives.

Archbishop Welby talked of being unconcerned that sentiment polls suggest that, connected this issue, the Church of England much broadly is considerably retired of measurement with the nationalist arsenic a whole.

Secular groups successful the UK person agelong called for religion to beryllium removed from the assisted dying statement and adjacent for elder bishops to suffer their close to beryllium successful the House of Lords wherever they tin ballot connected the matter.

“For 30 years arsenic a clergyman I've sat with radical astatine their bedside. And radical person said, ‘I privation my mum, I privation my daughter, I privation my member to spell due to the fact that this is truthful horrible,'” said the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Justin Welby said that helium did not privation radical to consciousness blameworthy for having specified thoughts, saying that arsenic a teen helium had sometimes harboured akin thoughts astir his ain begetter successful the last years of his life.

“What I'm saying is that introducing this authorities opens the mode to it broadening retired specified that radical who are not successful that concern [terminally ill] asking for this, oregon feeling pressured to inquire for it,” helium said.

The archbishop besides referred to the decease past twelvemonth of his parent Jane, 93, saying she had described feeling similar she was a “burden”. He said helium disquieted however galore others would consciousness compelled to inquire to dice if they felt the same.

Archbishop Welby said helium had noted a marked degradation successful his beingness of the thought that “everyone, nevertheless utile they are, is of adjacent worthy to society”, saying the disabled, sick and aged were often overlooked successful a mode that would person an interaction connected whether they mightiness entree assisted dying.

His contiguous predecessor arsenic Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord George Carey, is 1 of the astir salient Anglican voices who is successful enactment of the legalisation of assisted dying.

But the past clip assisted dying was voted connected astatine General Synod successful 2022, lone 7% of the Church of England’s nationalist assembly said they supported a alteration successful the law.

In comparison, nationalist sentiment polls conducted implicit caller years successful the UK person regularly indicated enactment for legalisation of assisted dying with majorities recorded successful the 60-75% range.

“There volition beryllium radical who look astatine that and accidental the Church is wholly retired of touch, that they wholly disagree with us, and accidental they are going obscurity adjacent a church, but we don't bash things connected the ground of sentiment polls,” said the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Last week Cardinal Vincent Nichols, caput of the Catholic Church successful England and Wales, urged Catholics to constitute to their MPs to explicit their absorption to assisted dying.

But it is the Church of England that besides has the privilege of being the “established Church” successful England, and it is 26 Church of England bishops and archbishops who automatically get seats successful the House of Lords and ballot connected legislation.

Assisted dying has already been 1 of the main issues where, for secular groups, that beingness successful parliament and power implicit matters of authorities has been brought into question.