ONE month after a Scots teacher travelled to Switzerland to end his life, a charity head has urged MSPs to change the law in his memory.
Perthshire man Richard Selley went to the Dignitas clinic in Zurich with wife Elaine and brother Peter after degenerative motor neurone disease (MND) made him a “prisoner” in his own body.
Prior to his death at the age of 65, Selley campaigned for a law change in Scotland that would make assisted dying legal here.
The Glenalmond resident said he would not consider ending his own life under the current rules, which he called “outdated”, for fear that wife Elaine would be prosecuted.
Now, Dignity in Dying Scotland director Ally Thomson has vowed to continue Selley’s fight. Writing for The National, she said: “It was an honour to campaign with Richard. His intellect, wit and compassion shone, even as his body faded.
“Richard sent a very clear message to 129 particular people who sit in the chamber of our parliament – change the law that has prevented me dying peacefully in Scotland.
“I made a promise to Richard to take his message directly to our MSPs and to keep the campaign firmly on the Scottish Parliaments agenda. In the weeks and months to come I will be taking his message to Holyrood. I will also take the evidence that our lawmakers need to bring about the changes Richard so desperately wanted to see.
“Our recent research tells the stories of people who have lived and died under the injustice of the current law. It quantifies the suffering that the law has created and demonstrates that dying people and their families are in effect the collateral damage of a blanket prohibition on assisted dying. “It shows that the current situation is broken and unsustainable and that even with the best palliative care 11 Scots a week – almost 600 a year, at a conservative estimate are dying badly. Eleven people a week dying in agony is 11 too many.”
The National will publish Thomson’s words in full on Monday.
Selley’s condition was diagnosed in 2015, one year after the death of independent MSP Margo MacDonald, whose End of Life Choices Bill also targeted a rule-change, but did not receive the backing of Parliament.
READ MORE: Assisted suicide campaigner Richard Selley ends life at Dignitas
It would have allowed people with terminal illnesses to seek the help of a doctor to end their own life, but a Holyrood committee said it had “significant flaws”.
That was welcomed by opponents to the change, who fear it would be immoral, unethical, open to abuse and say palliative care must be the priority. They include bodies such as Christian charity CARE, which expressed sympathy for Selley but warned of “wider societal harms”.
James Mildred, communications manager for CARE, said: “There is no way that we could have a law that is entirely safe from abuse and exploitation.
“We are deeply concerned that any assisted suicide legislation would put pressure on thousands upon thousands of elderly men and women and all of a sudden the right to die will become a duty to die.
“That is not something we should be doing as a society.”
While helping someone to end their life is not a specific crime under Scots law, those who do could be prosecuted for murder, culpable homicide or reckless endangerment.
However, assisted dying is an end-of-life choice for more than 100 million people in parts of the US, Canada and Australia, where individuals with terminal conditions leading to death within six months are subject to safeguarding checks related to age, mental capacity and more.
The Dignity in Dying campaign is calling for a bill that would allow “mentally competent” adults with fewer than six months to live as a result of a terminal condition to end their own life, following assessment by doctors and a judge.
The campaign seeks to legalise a system where individuals who fit the criteria could end their own lives,using medical means.
Before his death, Selley spoke out about the £10,000 cost of the fatal trip to Switzerland, and the impact on his family. “If assisted deaths were available in Scotland it would have eased many worries and my remaining time would have been dedicated to my wife, family and friends rather than complex admin,” he said.
Wife Elaine Logan commented: “The law in Scotland creates more stress, especially when your partner wants control. I would much prefer him to pass away in this country safely and to have the choice here.
“The thought of taking him on a plane to a foreign country where we do not know anyone, it is like a business transaction.”
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