Assisted dying laws could be ‘lethal weapon’ for domestic abusers, MSPs warned

Campaigners against domestic violence have warned that proposed new assisted dying laws could provide a “potentially lethal weapon” for abusers.

Concerns have been raised with MSPs that women living with an abusive partner who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness could be “coerced into consenting to an assisted death”.

Dr Anni Donaldson, an honorary research fellow at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow who specialises in the issue of domestic abuse, and Isabelle Kerr, the chief executive of the Beira’s Place support service in Edinburgh for women who have suffered sexual assault, said they are “not aware” if any consideration has been given to the impact the proposed new law could have on the “many Scottish women in this situation”.

They raised concerns in a letter to MSPs on Holyrood’s Health Committee who are currently scrutinising a Bill from Liberal Democrat Liam McArthur that aims to allow terminally ill adults in Scotland the right to seek help to die.

A vote is expected on the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill in the coming weeks at Holyrood.

But Dr Donaldson and Kerr said: “McArthur’s Bill risks offering a new, potentially lethal weapon to abusive men whose partners have been diagnosed with life-threatening or terminal illnesses.”

In a letter to committee convener Clare Haughey, they said they are “deeply concerned that women who have been diagnosed with life-threatening and terminal illnesses who are living with abusive partners may be coerced into consenting to an assisted death”.

They said: “State-sanctioned killing could provide a conducive context for a domestic abuse perpetrator’s ultimate act of control.”

McArthur’s Bill “completely ignores the risks” that could be created for women suffering from domestic abuse, the pair argued.

They said: “The Bill relies on the consent, choice, free will and autonomy of the person wishing to end their life.

“For too many women living with domestic abuse in Scotland today, these principles are simply non-existent in their daily lives.”

The women said they were raising their concerns as “professionals with many years’ experience of research and practice in the field of domestic abuse and the broader issue of violence against women and children”.

They told MSPs that in 2023-24, there were 63,867 incidents of domestic abuse reported to Police Scotland – with 81% of those involving a male perpetrator and a female victim.

However Dr Donaldson and Ms Kerr pointed out: “The true extent of domestic abuse in the Scottish population is unknown as it is considered to be a widely under-reported crime.”

Telling how living in an abusive relationship “isolates women from friends and family”, the experts said it could also “remove their capacity to make free choices and decisions”.

They said: “Women are regularly demeaned and told they are worthless, that they would ‘be better off dead’, or, that they are a ‘useless mother’, ‘the children would be better off without you’.”

The went on to state this “ongoing fear and trauma of coercive control and the constant humiliation can significantly erode women’s confidence, autonomy, and self-esteem”.

As a result, they added: “It is our position therefore that in this context, a woman living with an abusive partner is unlikely to be in a position to give her consent freely to the process of an assisted death.”

McArthur’s Bill “relies heavily on medical practitioners” to ensure a patient freely consents to the assisted dying process, the women said.

But they added: “A key factor in the dynamics of domestic abuse is its hidden and unreported nature. Women become expert at hiding and covering up the abuse.”

They said “abusive men are also extremely skilled at presenting as loving and caring partners in public”, warning that women with abusive partners receiving end of life care at home could be “particularly vulnerable to coercion”.

Dr Miro Griffiths, spokesman for the Better Way campaign group against assisted dying, said the letter is a “significant intervention” which “should give MSPs serious pause for thought”.

He said: “An ‘assisted dying’ law would provide a tool for bad actors to exploit, with women victims of domestic abuse particularly at risk of harm.

“The Bill before Holyrood is fatally flawed. There is no way to screen out coercion, no way to prevent deaths arising from incorrect prognosis, and no way to prevent people ending their lives due to an unjust lack of support.

“Ensuring the protection of Scotland’s most vulnerable citizens requires keeping assisted suicide off the statute book. We’d urge MSPs to oppose the Bill.”

McArthur said he is “confident that my proposals represent a robust and well safeguarded Bill, allowing Scots access to the choice of an assisted death if they have an advanced, progressive terminal illness and the mental capacity to make the decision”.

The Liberal Democrat MSP added: “Under the current ban on assisted dying, terminally ill people – women included – are taking matters into their own hands, ending their own lives at home or travelling to Switzerland. Right now we cannot know whether these people have made an entirely voluntary decision.

“Banning assisted dying merely drives it underground, disempowering dying people and failing to provide meaningful, upfront scrutiny of decisions.

“My Bill would put in place new protections for dying people who are suffering abuse, providing means for this to be detected and addressed in ways which the status quo is not capable of.

“Throughout this process, I have been committed to ensuring the right protections are in place, and the Bill I have put forward has safety measures woven into the fabric of the proposals.

“However, I remain open to listening to concerns such as the ones raised here and am open to amendments which would help to give dying people the compassionate choice they need and increase safety for all.”

Anyone living with domestic abuse, or concerned about someone who is, can seek support on Scotland’s 24-hour domestic abuse and forced marriage helpline on 0800 027 1234, by emailing helpline@sdafmh.org.uk, visiting sdafmh.org.uk, or by messaging 07401 288 595.