A PARLIAMENTARY inquiry considering whether Queenslanders should be allowed the right to die at a time of their choosing, as well as the future of aged care and how the terminally ill and their loved ones are supported was released yesterday.
The report has recommended that voluntary assisted dying be legislated in Queensland.
Scenic Rim MP Jon Krause said the LNP would consider the report.
"As a society, I believe we should value life," he said.
"Putting the issue of euthanasia to one side, the LNP believes it is important that government provides adequate resources to care for the terminally ill and their families."
Also read: Palaszczuk launches euthanasia inquiry
Also read: Vic sets voluntary euthanasia safeguards
Also read: David Goodall's final days moving viewing
The inquiry started in Queensland after Victoria introduced voluntary assisted dying laws in June last year, allowing terminally ill people who meet strict eligibility criteria to lawfully end their lives.
The recommendation is included in a report tabled in Parliament yesterday by the committee.
Parliament's Health Committee chair Aaron Harper said the report followed more than a year of extensive community consultations and public hearings as part of the Inquiry into Aged Care, End-of-Life and Palliative Care and Voluntary Assisted Dying.
"The committee believes that any such scheme should only be available to a person who has been diagnosed by a medical practitioner as having an advanced and progressive terminal, chronic or neurodegenerative medical condition that cannot be alleviated in a manner acceptable to the person, and that the condition will cause their death," Mr Harper said.
"We have also recommended a number of safeguards that would further limit who may be able to access any such scheme.
"The majority of Queenslanders who engaged with the inquiry supported the introduction of voluntary assisted dying and our recommendation to the parliament reflects this.
"We believe citizens should have the choice to access voluntary assisted dying if they fit the strict eligibility criteria and if this is a choice made by them."
President of pro-life advocacy group Cherish Life, Dr Donna Purcell, described the report as "reckless and dangerous".
"Instead of additional funding for palliative care, the four Labor/Greens members of the Health Committee recommended assisted suicide as the end-of-life care 'cure'," she said.
"It is obvious that the committee's recommendation to legalise euthanasia was a pre-determined outcome, with the majority of the committee taking a short cut and ignoring proper process by recommending a draft Bill put up by euthanasia advocates rather than requesting the Queensland Law Reform Commission to design the legislation.
"In this euthanasia Bill recommended by the Health Committee, there is no requirement that patients requesting euthanasia be seen by a specialist in their disease, or by a palliative care specialist to ensure they are receiving adequate pain relief, or by a psychiatrist to ensure they are not suffering depression.
"There are no safeguards against wrongful deaths, caused by wrong diagnosis, wrong prognosis, patients being unaware of available treatment or having no access to palliative care, or coercion and elder abuse.
"The misnomer "assisted dying" hides what euthanasia really is - intentional killing by lethal injection administered by doctors, or doctors providing poison for the patient to take."
Mr Harper said it was now a matter for the Queensland government to consider.
"The inquiry engaged with thousands of Queenslanders. We held 41 hearings across the state and received 4,729 written submissions. The views and experiences of submitters and over 500 witnesses informed our findings and recommendations," he said.
Mr Harper said the deadline for releasing the report was set by Parliament long before the current COVID-19 pandemic and there was no option to delay it beyond the current crisis.
"We are conscious that the release of this report at this time may cause some people distress, and ask the media to consider this when reporting on the committee's findings," he said.
