Conversation special: euthanasia laws pass Victoria's lower house

Editor's note

The Victorian parliament has today passed a bill to legalise physician assisted dying. The bill passed the lower house 47 votes to 37, but still has to pass the upper house when sitting resumes next month. If it does pass into law, terminally ill people over the age of 18 with less than a year to live will be able to access drugs to end their life.

We’ve been canvassing the issues on both sides of the debate for some time, and so here’s a round up of what our experts have had to say on the issue.

Alexandra Hansen

Section Editor, Health and Medicine

Top story

One paper reported that between 0.3% to 4.6% of all deaths are reported as euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide in jurisdictions where they are legal. Flickr/Alberto Biscalchin

In places where it's legal, how many people are ending their lives using euthanasia?

Andrew McGee, Queensland University of Technology

There is a growing body of evidence available on how many people are using euthanasia and assisted dying laws in places where it is legal.

Health + Medicine

Dying a good death: what we need from drugs that are meant to end life

Betty Chaar, University of Sydney; Sami Isaac, University of Sydney

The drug we know induces the best death for suffering patients is still illegal in Australia.
Victoria may soon have assisted dying laws for terminally ill patients

Ben White, Queensland University of Technology; Lindy Willmott, Queensland University of Technology

Public opinion, shifting views in the health profession and international trends allowing assisted dying mean it will be lawful in Australia at some point. But will it be lawful in Victoria soon?

Politics + Society
Sex versus death: why marriage equality provokes more heated debate than assisted dying Julian Savulescu, University of Oxford The assisted dying bill in Victoria – complex and significant – is engendering less heated debate than marriage equality although both tap into some of our most fundamental fears and motivations.

From the archives

FactCheck Q&A: do 80% of Australians and up to 70% of Catholics and Anglicans support euthanasia laws?

Colleen Cartwright, Southern Cross University

During a discussion on Q&A, author Nikki Gemmell said 80% of Australians and up to 70% of Catholics and Anglicans support euthanasia laws. Is that right?

As Victorian MPs debate assisted dying, it is vital they examine the evidence, not just the rhetoric

Ben White, Queensland University of Technology; Andrew McGee, Queensland University of Technology; Lindy Willmott, Queensland University of Technology

There is now a reputable body of research evidence from places that have introduced assisted dying, and MPs must examine that evidence before deciding how they will vote.

We don't need greater access to Nembutal to achieve good end-of-life care

Paul Komesaroff, Monash University

It is likely that, ironically, any legalisation of euthanasia in this country will actually hinder the care of those most in need.

Voluntary assisted dying is not a black-and-white issue for Christians – they can, in good faith, support it

Robyn J. Whitaker, University of Divinity; Jason Goroncy, University of Divinity

Christianity's long tradition of compassionate care for both the dying and the dead means it brings some wisdom and experience to the voluntary assisted dying issue.

When a 'good death' was often painful: euthanasia through the ages

Caitlin Mahar, Swinburne University of Technology

For centuries, in Western societies, 'euthanasia' referred to a pious death, blessed by God. The pain that could accompany dying was seen as ultimately redemptive.

When it comes to euthanasia, not all slippery slope arguments are 'bullshit'

Xavier Symons, University of Notre Dame Australia

People are right to be skeptical when it comes to many slippery slope arguments used by those against euthanasia. But some of them are valid and shouldn't be dismissed as 'bullshit'.

FactCheck Q&A: Were 550 babies killed last year under Dutch euthanasia laws?

Colleen Cartwright, Southern Cross University

Broadcaster Andrew Denton, an advocate for assisted dying law, told the Q&A audience it was not correct to say 550 newborn babies were killed last year under Dutch euthanasia laws. Is that right?

From 'right to die' to 'right to choose the way you die' – the shifting euthanasia debate

Peter Saul, University of Newcastle

It's possible the difference between Australia and the Netherlands (where euthanasia and assisted suicide are legal) lies more in the way we think about what we are doing than what actually happens.