A new legal opinion warns that Scotland’s proposed law to legalise assisted suicide is discriminatory against people with certain disabilities.
Tom Cross KC wrote his legal opinion on Liam McArthur MSP’s proposals - which are separate to the bill currently being considered in Westminster - for The Christian Institute.
In it he argues that the law as proposed would contravene the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
Suicidal thoughts are recognised as symptoms of certain disabilities and the proposed law could violate the right to life of those with such disabilities, putting them at greater risk of assisted suicide.
The proposed bill, says Cross, “unjustifiably discriminates against those persons whose disabilities manifest in the expression of suicidal ideation”.
Proponents of assisted suicide often bolster their case by pointing to proposed safeguards that would protect the vulnerable, however these have been described as “inadequate” by Cross in cases where a person suffers from “greater vulnerability”. The bill could be open to a legal challenge, if passed in its current form.
Cross said, “The time for ensuring that the bill protects the most vulnerable is during its passage through Parliament.
"In our view, it is inadequate, on analysis, to adopt a ‘wait and see’ approach, by which the State may come to learn in due course whether rights of its citizens have been violated. By that time the bill will be law, and the horse will have bolted.”
Legislation being considered by the Westminster Parliament has received a similar assessment from Cross.
The Westminster law passed the House of Commons earlier this year, but is due to come before the House of Lords this month. The Scottish bill is currently at the amendment stage. It is unknown when the bill will finally be voted on by the Scottish Parliament, although some point in early or mid-2026 is likely.
Simon Calvert, Deputy Director of The Christian Institute, said, “This stark warning about discrimination against disabled people embedded in this terrible Bill must surely force MSPs into action – especially those who voted in favour of the Bill at Stage 1 earlier this year."
He added that the document "should set alarm bells ringing for them".
"It shows authoritatively that, among its many other fundamental flaws, the bill discriminates against disabled people in a very specific way by failing to provide for any assessment of whether what appears to be a settled wish to die is actually a manifestation of their condition," he said.
MSP Pam Duncan-Glancy has raised concerns in the Scottish Parliament that the bill presents an “unsurmountable risk to disabled peoples’ equality and human rights”.
In a recent debate, First Minister John Swinney, speaking in a personal capacity because of the SNP's official neutrality on the issue, said he shared these concerns.
He said, “As Miss Duncan-Glancy will know, I do not support the Assisted Dying Bill, and I don’t support it for many of the reasons that she has just put on the record."
He added: “These are issues that Parliament will have to wrestle with as it considers the legislation. But, I can only express to her my agreement with the point that she’s made.”
