Dignity in Dying

Debbie Purdy has MS and is fighting to ensure that if she travels to Switzerland to commit suicide and her husband accompanies her, he is not prosecuted for 'assisting' a suicide. How 'accompanying' can be held to be 'assisting' is beyond me and, I hope, beyond the High Court Judges who will have to decide this case.

I expressed my support for this brave woman's case to Dignity in Dying and they have asked if I would be interested in doing some press interviews to put forwards this position. I've agreed to do a couple and to see how it goes and how everyone feels about it. I'm worried about my wife, mostly, as for rather obvious reasons she's uncomfortable with me having to contemplate suicide rather than being trapped in some shattered physical shell of a body with limited sensory input while clearly appreciating the necessity.

The idea of lobbying for it just confronts her with it in an uncomfortable way but I strongly believe that if I can do anything, anything at all, that means if I ever have to take the euthanasia option, I can travel abroad to do it and have my beloved wife with me to say goodbye without fear of her being prosecuted for 'assisting' my suicide and facing up to 14 years in prison then I have to do it.