Conservative party leadership front-runner Robert Jenrick has changed his stance on assisted suicide and has come out in opposition to its legalisation.
During the first round of voting last week, the former Immigration Minister, Robert Jenrick topped the poll of MPs in the first stage of the leadership contest with 28 votes.
Coming at the same time as some commentators are seeing the contestants’ stance on assisted suicide as increasingly important, Jenrick has apparently undergone a significant political transformation on this issue.
Despite voting in favour of legalising assisted suicide in 2015, Jenrick appears to have changed his mind and no longer backs assisted suicide, a change apparently motivated by concerns about Canada’s experience with assisted suicide legislation.
Where do the Conservative leadership candidates stand on the assisted suicide debate?
Jenrick’s change of heart is likely to influence the ongoing leadership race. Other candidates such as Mel Stride appear to have also adjusted their positions on the issue.
In 2023, he said he “would not be averse” to a new Commons debate on assisted suicide. “If Parliament, in some form or another, decided that it wanted to have a fresh look at this, given it was some years ago that we last did so, that’s not something I would be resistant to”.
He said someone should have the “maximum opportunity to have control of the end of their life”.
Stride also did not sign a separate 2024 Right To Life UK pledge to oppose the introduction of assisted suicide and support better palliative care at the end of life.
However, he recently told news outlet the i that he “would likely lean in favour” of allowing assisted suicide if a vote comes before Parliament, but he would want to see the details before committing. “It is a finely balanced decision which I wouldn’t now rule in or out; I would want to see the proposals”, he added.
Shadow Housing Secretary, Kemi Badenoch came second in the first round of the leadership contest with 22 votes.
She did not sign a 2024 Right To Life UK pledge to oppose the introduction of assisted suicide and support better palliative care at the end of life.
The Shadow Home Secretary, James Cleverly came in third with 21 votes. Cleverly, who voted against assisted suicide in 2015, maintains his opposition but emphasises the need for improved palliative care.
In a post on X in 2015, he said “I entered the chamber troubled by the idea of the assisted dying bill, my mind is now fully made up and I will be voting against”.
However, Cleverly also did not sign a 2024 Right To Life UK pledge to oppose the introduction of assisted suicide and support better palliative care at the end of life.
17 MPs voted for Shadow Minister for Security, Tom Tugendhat, putting him in third place. In 2015, he voted against making assisted suicide legal.
Tugendhat also did not sign a 2024 Right To Life UK pledge to oppose the introduction of assisted suicide and support better palliative care at the end of life.
Former Home Secretary, Priti Patel was knocked out of the contest in the first round of voting by Conservative MPs. Patel also did not sign a 2024 Right To Life UK pledge to oppose the introduction of assisted suicide and support better palliative care at the end of life.
Euthanasia in Canada
In 2021, the Canadian Parliament repealed the requirement that the natural death of those applying for assisted suicide be “reasonably foreseeable”. This took place only five years after the original legislation allowing euthanasia and assisted suicide was passed in 2016.
In 2022, the number of people who ended their lives by euthanasia or assisted suicide increased by 31.2% from the previous year, accounting for 4.1% of all deaths in Canada.
According to the latest report on assisted suicide and euthanasia from Health Canada, 13,241 people ended their lives by euthanasia or assisted suicide in 2022. There were 3,149 more deaths than in 2021, which had also seen a more than 30% increase from the year before.
A total of 44,958 people have ended their lives by assisted suicide or euthanasia in Canada since legislation making it legal was passed in 2016.
Spokesperson for Right To Life UK, Catherine Robinson, said “We welcome Jenrick’s reconsideration of this critical issue. The experiences in countries like Canada serve as a stark warning about the consequences of legalising assisted suicide. Our political leaders must prioritise improving palliative care and supporting the most vulnerable in our society, rather than opening the door to state-sanctioned assisted suicide”.
