Sir Ed Davey has recalled the “pain” of looking after his terminally ill mother when he was just a child as he called for more investment into palliative care.
The Lib Dem leader told the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge that while he welcomed a debate on assisted dying, he is “quite sceptical” because of his own experience.
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Sir Ed’s mother had bone cancer and secondary breast cancer “which is an extremely painful form of cancer”, he said.
He was only 12 when she was diagnosed, and nursed her with his brother for three years at home before she died.
Describing the treatment she needed he said: “I would give her morphine every day as a teenager, helped give her self-injections, helped put pads on her to give herself electric shocks.
“I went through quite a lot of pain treatment. I saw my mother’s reaction when she died and the pain left her face. So I was quite emotional.
“Linked with the whole issue around palliative care and having gone to hospices and seeing other people and talking to doctors, I genuinely think we can do far, far better than we’ve done in the past.”
Sir Ed said he would “listen to the debate” on assisted dying “but I have to say, what I’ve done in the past, I’ve voted against, and I am quite sceptical.”
The Kingston and Surbiton MP, who is now a carer for his disabled son, said he was also concerned about the “psychological impact” elderly or disabled people may feel about “being a burden on their loved ones”, resulting in them agreeing to something that “actually in their heart of hearts they don’t want to happen”.
While the legislation currently being tabled relates to terminal illness only, he pointed to other countries with euthanasia laws, like Canada, where the qualifying criteria has broadened over time.
