Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney, is planning to introduce a private members bill which would introduce assisted suicide in Scotland. However, recent developments in Canada have sparked concern about bringing in similar legislation in Scotland. Reports have emerged of marginalised Canadians seeking an ‘assisted death’ due to poverty, disability and homelessness. Is this a progressive route for Scotland?

Amir Farsoud didn’t want to die. But after being threatened with eviction, he applied for MAiD (medical assistance in dying) rather than face homelessness. Mr Farsoud, from Ontario, did not have a terminal illness, but was signed off for euthanasia because of chronic back pain. ‘I don’t want to die but I don’t want to be homeless more than I don’t want to die,’ he said. ‘It’s not my first choice.’ His story made headlines, and a GoFundMe page set up for him raised over $60,000 - enough to get him new housing - and to change his mind about ending his life. Just a month after his story was first shared, Mr Farsoud said: “I’m a different person…I had nothing but darkness, misery, stress and hopelessness. Now I have all the opposite of those things.”

Thankfully, Mr Farsoud's story has a happy ending. But for many marginalised and suffering people in Canada, the end has been very different. Michael Fraser, who, again, was not terminally ill, had his life ended on July 2, at the age of 55. His physician said: “poverty is pushing people to MAiD … For sure, I think the fact that he had trouble paying his rent made it harder for him to be in this world.” A woman in Ontario was forced into euthanasia because her benefits did not allow her to move to better housing which didn’t aggravate her crippling allergies. Another disabled woman applied to die because she ‘simply cannot afford to keep on living’.

Dr Miro Griffiths, expert adviser on disability policy, says that Canada is a clear warning to Scotland. "Canada shows that laws of this kind are inherently unsafe, and unpredictable. In Canada and other European jurisdictions, safeguards have failed and been dispensed with over time as activists push for wider access to legislation.

“Cases of coercion and abuse, and worsening discrimination against marginalised groups are also part of the global picture. People feel forced to opt for assisted death because of poverty, homelessness, or a lack of care...

“The evidence heard in previous debates about assisted suicide makes it clear that legalising this practice in Scotland would jeopardise the safety, dignity, and equality of many Scots. It remains a regressive and dangerous plan.”

The new First Minister will have a lot of influence on whether such legislation goes ahead. Sign this petition calling on all the leadership candidates to reject any move to legalise assisted suicide.