REPORT OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON THE DRAFT MENTAL INCAPACITY BILL

Early day motion 303, tabled 16 December 2003 by Joe Benton (Labour). Signed by 55 members.

That this House notes the Report of the Joint Committee on the Draft Mental Incapacity Bill; regrets its inadequacies but appreciates the Committee's complaints regarding the lack of time allowed them to complete the Report (Conclusion 1); notes the Committee's claim that the Mental Incapacity Bill is not a euthanasia bill despite the fact that it endorses the withdrawal of assisted food and fluid from non-dying patients with the inevitable result of ending their lives by dehydration and starvation; reminds the House of a number of case law judgments which decree that persons who purposefully cause death by omission are guilty of homicide; further notes the Committee' recommendation that an extra assurance should be written into the Bill to assuage any fears about euthanasia; stresses, however, that changing the name on a package does not change the contents; notes with repugnance the Committee's recommendation that mentally incapacitated patients could be used for research; notes that this breaches the basic human right that an individual unable to consent to treatment for himself/herself should never be used for invasive research unless the work could have potential benefit for that individual; and calls on the Government to ensure that the Mental Incapacity Bill protects mentally incapacitated patients from being used for experiments and from having assisted food and fluid withdrawn with the purpose of ending their lives.

Signatures by party: Conservative 24, Labour 17, Liberal Democrat 7, Labour/Co-operative 2, DUP 1, Independent Conservative 1, Independent Ulster Unionist 1, Social Democratic and Labour Party 1, UUP 1.