7 in 10 people of faith would support legalising assisted dying

Press release |

  • More than three quarters of Church of England Christians, and 2 in 3 Roman Catholics, believe that the UK’s ban on assisted dying should end.
  • Major new report brings together evidence of multiple harms the ban inflicts on dying people and their families.
  • Westminster facing mounting pressure to act, as majority of British public demand change and bills move forward in devolved administrations.

Around 7 in 10 (69%) of people who follow a religion in England and Wales have indicated that they would support assisted dying becoming a legal option for terminally ill people in the UK, according to new research released today by Dignity in Dying.

A poll of 1,844 people in England and Wales, of which 766 belong to a religion, found that those who would back a change in the law included more than three quarters (78%) of people who described their faith as Church of England, Anglican or Episcopal, and more than two-thirds (68%) of Roman Catholics.

The research, released as part of Dignity in Dying’s new report – Time for Choice: The truth about the UK’s ban on assisted dying – showed that there is support for assisted dying among all major religions in the UK, including Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism and Buddhism.

Over half (58%) of religious people in England and Wales said they know a loved one who has suffered at the end of life, with four in 10 (38%) believing their loved one would have considered an assisted death had it been a legal option for them in the UK.

Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain, Chair of Dignity in Dying, said:

“This research shows that, all over the country and in every walk of life, people are crying out for change on assisted dying. That includes an overwhelming majority of people of faith, myself included, who support this change because of our beliefs, not in spite of them.

“Millions of people have watched a loved one suffer at the end of their life. They know that, whatever your beliefs, there is no moral argument for prolonging suffering when a dying person says that’s enough, I want to take control.

“MPs must bring forward this debate as a matter of urgency and end the intolerable suffering the ban inflicts on dying people and their loved ones with every day that Westminster drags its heels.”

Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, said:

“It is no surprise to me that large numbers of Christians would support a compassionate assisted dying law in this country. One of the key themes of the Gospels is love for our fellow human beings. Doing whatever we can to relieve needless suffering and bring peace is a profoundly Christian act.

“It is my greatest hope that, after many years of delay, lawmakers will now finally grasp this issue and craft a new settlement for dying people that provides the compassion and kindness that so many in this country would like to see.”

Public support for assisted dying has been consistently high for many decades. Nearly 8 in 10 people (78%) in England and Wales say they would support the introduction of a law that would enable terminally ill, mentally competent adults this choice.

Dignity in Dying’s report brings together, for the first time, existing evidence plus brand new research and polling on how the UK’s lack of a legal, safeguarded option of assisted dying causes significant harm to dying people and their families every day. It exposes how the current law is:

  • Unsafe. Up to 650 dying people end their own lives in the UK every year. These deaths are often violent and lonely. ¹
  • Unfair. 17 people a day suffer as they die because palliative care, no matter how good, cannot relieve all suffering all of the time. ²
  • Unregulated. More than 630 dying Brits have travelled to Switzerland for an assisted death. This option is not available to everyone, and the law offers no protection to individuals or loved ones who provide support. ³

The report compares powerful real-life stories of dying people in the UK with their counterparts in Australia and the US, where assisted dying laws gave them the ability to control the manner and timing of their deaths within robust legal frameworks.

These findings increase the growing pressure on MPs to bring an end to the UK’s harmful ban on assisted dying and introduce the type of strictly safeguarded, compassionate law for terminally ill people that exists in many other parts of the world, including in all states in Australia, across New Zealand and parts of the US.

This comes as the Health and Social Care Select Committee prepares to report on the first ever Commons inquiry into assisted dying, launched in December 2022, while separate bills are already making progress in Scotland, Jersey and the Isle of Man.

Time for Choice: The truth about the UK’s ban on assisted dying can be viewed and downloaded at https://www.dignityindying.org.uk/timeforchoice