My parents were able to die together, hand in hand

A WOMAN whose parents opted for assisted deaths at the same time says she now backs giving people the choice to end their lives.

- By Hanna Geissler Health Editor

Canadian couple Coby and Gerald Goguen fell asleep hand in hand in February to the sound of Climax Blues Band's I Love You the first-dance song from their wedding.

They chose to end their lives under Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) process, after Coby, 62, was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

In the meantime, complications from a previous cancer treatment had left construction worker Gerald, 70, in agony.

Canada's law is broader than Labour MP Kim Leadbeater's proposed UK legislation, backed by the Daily Express Give Us Our Last Rights crusade.

Reassured

Her Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill permits assisted dying only for those who are terminally ill and in the last six months of life. It passed its second reading in the House of Commons on November 29 and is now at its committee stage.

Coby and Gerald's daughter Lee, 33, said she initially felt "upset" when assisted dying was legalised in Canada because she feared disabled people might use it instead of receiving social help.

But she supported her parents' decision and was reassured by the thorough process and the hours doctors spent with them discussing their choices.