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May 14, 2025Bishop John Keenan expresses his concern and sadness towards the Scottish Parliament vote on Assisted Suicide (13th May 2025)
“Yesterday, (13 May 2025) members of the Scottish Parliament have voted to support legislation which brings assisted suicide closer to becoming a legal reality in our country. It is with great sadness that I respond to their decision.
It is hard to believe that any parliamentarian could support what will effectively be the creation of a state suicide service. Politicians should be working hard to provide the support necessary for people to live, not give them a lethal concoction of drugs to die.
At a time when suicide is on the rise in Scotland and we are doing our best to reduce it, what message are we sending when we say that suicide is the right choice provided it is overseen by a doctor? Laws like this normalise suicide and, with it, the false idea that some people’s lives are beyond hope.
This dangerous legislation devalues human life and puts our most vulnerable brothers and sisters under terrible pressure to take their lives prematurely. When vulnerable people, including the elderly and disabled, express concerns about being a burden, the appropriate response is not to suggest that they have a duty to die. Rather, it is to commit ourselves to meeting their needs and providing the care and compassion they need to help them live.
I urge every MSP to consider the great dangers inherent in assisted suicide legislation and to focus their energies on ensuring we provide better palliative care, giving everyone access to modern pain relief and the highest quality of care.”
Bishop John Keenan
Bishop of Paisley and President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland