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Assisted dying:-
"Stop the scaremongering" says MEP
CLAIMS that assisted dying
legislation would put the lives of thousands of disabled and
vulnerable people at risk have been dismissed as
"scaremongering nonsense with no basis in fact" by an MEP
expert.
A report by the independent commission on assisted dying, chaired by
Lord Falconer, out on Thursday, 5 January 2012, calls for doctors to
be allowed to respect their patients’ wishes if proper procedures
are followed.
But its proposals have already been attacked by groups such as Care
Not Killing. They claim that the changes will create a slippery
slope leading to the premature deaths of people who feel they are a
burden on others.
Liberal Democrat MEP Chris Davies has written about assisted dying
in Switzerland and has made a special study of practices in Belgium
and the Netherlands where euthanasia has been legal for more than a
decade.
Chris Davies said:- "The law in Belgium and the Netherlands
incorporates safeguards to prevent abuse. It commands overwhelming
public support and the fears of those who criticised the original
proposals have been proven completely unfounded. Less than 2% of all
deaths in the Netherlands are attributable to euthanasia, and they
most commonly involve cancer patients living at home and in the very
last days of their natural lives."
Davies claims that it would be possible for lawmakers here to go
further than in Belgium and the Netherlands, and to include as many
as 20 different safeguards in assisted dying legislation.
He said:- "Patients who seeks medical assistance to die must
be suffering unendurably with no hope of recovery. The hard question
for lawmakers is to decide whether they must also be terminally ill,
knowing that such a requirement would prevent some people in a state
of almost complete paralysis from being able to escape lives that to
them are intolerable."
The MEP claims that in Britain the issue has been hijacked by
religious groups who have succeeded in preventing change through
dogmatic convictions.
Chris Davies added that:- "Palliative care may be good but
there will always be some people in distressing circumstances who
seek a different option. To deny them the right to exercise their
free will is cruel not kind."
What do our readers think about this topic? Please email us your
views to:-
news24@southportreporter.com.
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West Derby
Shooting on 25 December Update
MERSEYSIDE Police have
confirm that the men aged 21, 25 and 30 who had been arrested in
connection with a shooting in West Derby, on Sunday, 25 December
2011, have now been bailed pending further enquiries. On Sunday, 25
December 2011, Police officers had been called to attended the West
Derby Public House, in West Derby Village, at around 10.15pm,
following reports of shots being fired outside. A short time later a
23 year old man presented himself at hospital with gunshot injuries
to his leg. Merseyside Police Officers are still wanting to
talk to people who were both in the public house and the area at the
time. They would urge anyone who has information about this
incident, or who witnessed it, to contact the Matrix on:- 0151 777
5699 or Crimestoppers on:- 0800 555 111. We have also been
told that CCTV from the area is being examined and patrols have been
stepped up in the area.
General Enquiry
Office Changes In Sefton
IN October 2011, Merseyside
Police and Merseyside Police Authority made announcements about a
number of changes within the force, to increase police officer
visibility on the streets of Merseyside and to meet the reduced
budget set by the Government. This included information about
how Merseyside Police is changing the way the public contact the
police across the force area. All police stations will remain
open, but as part of cost saving proposals the MPA has agreed a
number of changes to General Enquiry Office (GEO) opening times
across Sefton. This means that from Monday, 9 January 2012,
Southport Police Station will be open 7 days week and 24 hours a
day.
March Lane Police Station will act as a sister station, and will
be open from 8am to 10pm, Monday to Saturday.
Superintendent Kevin Johnson said:- "In all the changes we
have made we have focused on what the public tell us is important;
maintaining a visible policing presence, answering your calls within
our target time and attending, both emergency and non- emergency
calls, within our agreed target time. No police stations will close,
but as part of the cost savings, the number of GEOs across the force
will reduce from 34 to 12. I would like to reassure our communities
that residents in every area will continue to have access to a 24
hour police station within their local area and another that is open
from 8am until 10pm."
Members of the community will continue to be able access the police
in a variety of ways including face to face, over the phone,
community meetings, online and surgeries in libraries and shops. If
you have a non-emergency incident to report or want to speak to your
local neighbourhood policing team, you can call via the new phone
number:- ‘101’. For more information visit:-
merseyside.police.uk.
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