As many as 77 per cent people in Canada support the right to physician assisted dying, a poll has shown.
Dying With Dignity Canada said that the results of the poll have confirmed what they have been knowing since long. The results of the poll, wherein 1,440 Canadian voters were asked whether they support assisted dying or not, were released on Friday by the Toronto Star and Forum Research announced the results of their fifth-annual poll on end-of-life choice.
A total of 77 per cent of respondents said yes, up from 74 per cent in Forum’s 2014 poll on the same question. Notably, opposition to assisted dying dropped by a quarter, from 16 per cent to 12 per cent, in the same period. And 11 per cent — about one person in 10 — said they were undecided.
According to Dying with Dignity, the results of the poll are another confirmation of the fact that there is a growing consensus in Canada on physician assisted dying. A poll released just after the Supreme Court’s February decision to decriminalize assisted dying suggested that 78 per cent of Canadians supported the ruling.
“Momentum is growing,” says Wanda Morris, CEO of Dying With Dignity Canada, the leading organization committed to improving quality of dying, expanding end of life choices, and helping Canadians avoid unwanted suffering. “This is a validation of the Supreme Court’s decision to establish choice in dying as a right for Canadians.”
Though the poll numbers indicate growing support, one question does come to light – why candidates have been so quiet on assisted dying on the federal campaign trail?
End-of-life choice has majority approval among supporters of every major federal party, according to the Forum poll. Support is highest among NDP supporters (84 per cent) and lowest among self-identified Conservatives (67 per cent). A provincial breakdown shows that support is highest in Quebec (83 per cent) and lowest in Alberta (69 per cent).
“With such strong support from the public, we’re curious as to why we haven’t seen leadership from our politicians,” said Morris. “Offering meaningful access to assisted dying represents a huge opportunity for federal candidates to connect with voters who are concerned about protecting their right to a peaceful death.”
The Supreme Court of Canada announced on Feb. 6, 2015 that it would be striking down the Criminal Code ban on assisted dying. It established guidelines for who will be eligible to access assisted death and gave provincial and federal lawmakers one year for the decision to come into effect.
However, for months, the federal government was mostly quiet on how it would respond to the decision. It announced a public consultation on assisted dying on July 17, with Prime Minister Stephen Harper calling the federal election less than three weeks later. None of the provinces, except for Quebec, have passed assisted dying bills.
Eleven provinces and territories, led by Ontario, have joined forces to establish a expert panel to study possible legislative responses to the Supreme Court’s judgment in Carter v. Canada.
