South West Coast MP Roma Britnell has thrown her support behind legislation that will introduce assisted dying in Victoria for terminally ill people.
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Mrs Britnell, who previously said there should be legislation around voluntary euthanasia, described the approach to the issue in a report put out by a ministerial panel as “the right thing to do”.
The MP has drawn on her 30-year nursing career to inform her decision.
“From my perspective, I have in the parliament one of the broadest understandings and experiences of what really happens,” she said.
“I have nursed many, many people dying.”
“I can remember the very first patient that I nursed who died, and preparing his body post-death. It was my best friend’s grandfather. You can’t live in a town this size without it becoming very personal and profound.”
The report made 66 recommendations advocating a system whereby a terminally ill person could access lethal medication following a three-step request process.
Premier Daniel Andrews said a bill to be put forward by his government in the coming months would incorporate all of the recommendations.
Opposition leader Matthew Guy said it was a sensitive issue for many Victorians and confirmed he would vote against assisted dying legislation. Mr Guy called for a ‘free vote’ on the issue.
Mrs Britnell said she was “very impressed” by the way the report had been written and thought it proposed appropriate safeguards.
“This is about making sure that people who are dying, who have weeks or months to live, that they are given the option,” she said.
“This is an option that will help people feel more at peace with the future – and it’s a very confronting one.
“I think we should allow them that right.”
Western Victoria MP James Purcell said he believed the bill would have some of the strictest controls for assisted dying of anywhere in the world.
“If you’ve got the two doctors so you can’t be manipulated I’ll definitely be supporting it,” he said.
Mr Purcell said his position on the issue gradually developed over decades.
He said his wife worked in aged care, and at many dinner meetings with doctors and nurses the topic arose.
Mr Purcell said he believed three quarters of the population would support changes with the right controls.
