I'm Team Wes when it comes to assisted dying debate – it's a slippery slope

Health Secretary says he will the Bill to legalise assisted suicide.

He’s changed his mind because palliative care in the is not good enough for patients to make an informed choice. This is a bombshell to supporters of legislation allowing terminally-ill adults to end their lives.

It was assumed that the Bill would sail through, with the backing of the and his devoted band of new Labour MPs. But if the minister responsible doubts whether the could cope with such a dramatic change in our way of life – and death – then the parliamentary vote on November 29 could be much closer.

Moreover, it’s not just the huge new burden on doctors, nurses and hospice carers. Despite campaigners’ claims to the contrary, there is a slippery slope here. Once the right to death on demand is given, it cannot be taken away. There is no sliding upwards, as ­international evidence shows.

In the Netherlands, it’s now legal for young people ­experiencing “unbearable suffering with no prospect of improvement” to demand euthanasia. Last year 40 under age 30 did so, including two aged 16 or 17.

Dutch law offers the right to die on both physical and mental health grounds. In 2023, 138 met their death this way, mostly women under the age of 60 with a depressive disorder, a dramatic rise on previous years.

Is that the best we can do for sick people? No wonder has had second thoughts. That is the direction of travel – to the grave. Campaigners here already demand that legislation goes further, embracing incurable conditions like Parkinson’s disease.

I’m behind Wes in the “No” Lobby, not in “Yes”. Too hasty by half, this crusade for voluntary euthanasia.

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Crim of the crop

says many early-release criminals would make good entrepreneurs.

He should know. The billionaire businessman coyly admits spending a night in the slammer. Join the club. I was locked up overnight in Kingston-on-Thames after falling asleep on a bus. It had been a very long lunch, ml’ud.

I also kipped in the old police station in Normanton, West Yorkshire, when my disciplinarian father locked me out. Most uncomfortable... a smelly blanket on wooden boards.

I sympathise with the cons rejoicing at their unexpected freedom. We send too many people to prison.

It does too little for them, or for society. Public opinion always demands harsh sentences, but there are better ways of punishment – tagging, house arrest and community service.