Grey-Thompson says right to die will be open to abuse

Sporting hero and disability rights campaigner says loopholes in the assisted dying bill mean there are no real safeguards

- DAVID MADDOX

Tanni Grey-Thompson has warned that if parliament passes a law allowing assisted dying it will enable unscrupulous families to go “doctor shopping” to end the lives of elderly, disabled or sick relatives.

The 11-time Paralympic gold medallist, now a disability rights campaigner and member of the House of Lords, spoke exclusively to The Independent about her fears of the consequences if MPs and peers pass the controversial legislation.

The private members bill brought forward by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater is due to have its second reading in the Commons on 29 November. But already both ministers who will be responsible for overseeing its implementation if it is passed – health secretary Wes Streeting and justice secretary Shabana Mahmood – have indicated that they will oppose the legislation.

Baroness Grey-Thompson dismisses claims by Ms Leadbeater and her supporters that the bill contains the strictest safeguards in the world, warning that “the reality ... is very different”. The cross-bench peer’s intervention comes after a warning from Sir James Munby, former president of the family division of the High Court, who also raised serious concerns about the bill’s safeguards.

In a forthright interview, she questions the myths behind assisted dying and highlights the loopholes in the bill, which she believes will open the floodgates to abuse. She argues that Section 4 (5) of the bill means that if one doctor refuses to sign a request, another can then be found who will – as two doctors and a judge are needed to provide permission for the procedure.