Doctors from Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children have published their policies and procedures for administering medically assisted suicide to children, including scenarios where the parents would not be told until after the child dies.

The article, in a prestigious medical journal, has appeared three months before the Canadian Council of Academies is due to report to Parliament on medical consensus about extending euthanasia beyond the bounds of the current law.

Specifically, the council is looking at extending the law to patients under 18, psychiatric patients and patients who have said they want an assisted suicide before they are rendered incapable by Alzheimer’s or some other disease.

According to the article, if patients under 18 say they do not want their parents involved, doctors and nurses must respect the patient’s wishes.

Canadian assisted suicide law

• February 2015: Supreme Court of Canada ruled in Carter v Canada that parts of the criminal code would need to change to satisfy Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
• June 2016: Parliament of Canada passes Federal legislation that allows eligible Canadian adults to request assisted suicide.
• 5 October 2020: Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada introduces Bill C-7 which makes changes to Canada’s law on assisted suicide.
• 17 March 2021: Parliament passes revised legislation which means more people can choose an assisted suicide. Key safeguards are scrapped.

UK Assisted Suicide Law

Assisted suicide and euthanasia are illegal under the Suicide Act of 1961 in all parts of the UK.

In Scotland, Liam McArthur MSP has lodged an assisted suicide bill.

There are moves to legalise assisted suicide in Jersey as well.