Is assisted suicide or euthanasia legal?
The Human Rights Act, 1998, requires that a person’s right to life is protected by the law. In the UK, it is illegal to assist someone in taking his or her life. In a recent case, Diane Pretty, a severely disabled woman, was refused permission from the courts to let her husband help her to end her own life. The nature of her disability meant she was unable to end her life without assistance. Under English law, she could choose to die only if she were physically capable of carrying it out herself. Euthanasia is a criminal act and treated as murder, punishable by a possible life sentence. However, it is lawful for a patient to refuse life-prolonging treatment. In some cases, medical treatment can legally and ethically be withdrawn by doctors when it is futile to continue, or when it cannot accomplish any improvements.
