Media Release 23 July 2023
Sir Roger Douglas, a founder of ACT believes that ACT has lost its way and refuses to vote for ACT at the 2023 general election. Right to Life encourages electors concerned with protecting our right to life to follow the example of Sir Roger.
Right to Life believes that the ACT Party which was shamefully at the forefront in promoting and supporting the End of Life Choice Act [EOLC Act] 2019, which permits doctors to kill their patients with a lethal injection or assist their suicide, will be vigorously promoting amendments to the Act in 2024.
The review of the EOLC Act will be conducted in 2024. The leader of ACT, David Seymour, advised Right to Life on 28th November 2021 that it was his intention to reinstate the following original intentions at the earliest opportunity:-
• Those who have stipulated euthanasia, if appropriate, in their “advance care directives” to be given a lethal injection at a time decided by the doctor.
• Those who, “have a grievous and irremediable medical condition, including an illness, disease or disability, that causes enduring suffering that is intolerable to the individual.” Will qualify for euthanasia.
Right to Life believes that David Seymour will also seek the following amendments :-
• Removed requirement that 2 doctors certify that their patient is expected to die within six months.
• Remove the prohibition of doctors initiating discussion about “assisted dying“ in a range of options for care. Right to Life believes that this would lead to intolerable pressure on patients to believe that they were a burden on their families and on society. The right to die would become a duty to die.
Right to Life believes that ACT has a duty to the people of New Zealand to be transparent in its objectives to increase the number of patients who qualify for a lethal injection or to be assisted in suicide. ACT is deceiving the electorate by keeping its euthanasia agenda secret for fear of losing electoral support.
Right to Life is concerned that on current polling ACT could increase its caucus in Parliament from 10 to 16 M.Ps. Right to Life believes that if the electorate was aware of the secret agenda of ACT and the threat that they pose to the vulnerable, that its electoral support would greatly reduce.
Right to Life believes that if Act is successful in achieving their proposed amendments that many more vulnerable patients will be given a lethal injection or assisted in suicide.
We should be warned by the experience of Canada. Its law was changed in 2021 to allow for non-terminally ill patients to be given a lethal injection. In 2021 more than 10,000 patients in Canada were killed with a lethal injection or assisted in suicide, this was an increase of 32.4 % increase over 2020.
Right to Life notes that in addition to ACT, the Labour Party and the Green Party support assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Right to Life encourages electors to vote only for candidates who are opposed to the killing of the unborn and the vulnerable in society.
Ken Orr,
Spokesperson,
Right to Life New Zealand.