Wendy Duffy, distraught over her son’s death, decided to end her life at a Swiss assisted death clinic. -Credit:Facebook
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A British mother chose to end her life in a Swiss clinic after the death of her only child and after assisted death legislation failed in the U.K.’s House of Lords.
Wendy Duffy, 56, was physically healthy when she decided to go to the Pegasos clinic in Basel. She had been reeling from the death of her son Marcus, The Guardian reported. The 23-year-old died from choking on a sandwich that got trapped in his windpipe.
Ruedi Habegger, the founder of the clinic, called Duffy’s death a “sane suicide.” “I can confirm that Wendy Duffy, at her own request, was assisted to die on 24 April and that the procedure was completed without incident and in full compliance with her wishes,” he told the Daily Mail.
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‘My life, my choice’
Duffy, a former care worker from the West Midlands, had a previous attempt at taking her own life. She paid Pegasos £10,000. Her siblings, four sisters and two brother, knew she applied to the clinic.
“I will call them when I get to Switzerland. It will be a hard call where I’ll say goodbye and thank them. But they will get it,” she told the Daily Mail. “My life, my choice. I wish this was available in the U.K., then I wouldn’t have to go to Switzerland at all.”
Pegasos Clinic -Credit:Pegasos
Habegger said Duffy’s mental health was assessed. “Neither we nor any of the professional staff assessing her mental capacity had any doubt as to her intention, understanding and independence of both thought and action,” he said.
MPs vow to retry assisted death bill
British lawmakers said they would reintroduce a bill to legalize assisted deaths in the U.K. -Credit:PA
Duffy’s experience highlights what lawmakers have said is a “clear appetite” for assisted deaths in the U.K. A bill to legalize the practice in England and Wales had been stalled for months in the House Lords until Friday, when it was tabled.
The legislation previously passed in the Commons in June. It was blocked in the Lords after more than 1,200 amendments were tabled.
The bill proposed allowing adults in England and Wales with less than six months to live to apply for an assisted death, requiring the approval of two doctors and an expert panel.
Proponents of the bill vowed it would be reintroduced.
“There is a clear public appetite for changing the law, and as legislators we have a duty to do something about that,” Kim Leadbeater, a Labour MP. said. “I think there is certainly an appetite to bring legislation back, even from certain people who voted against it, because they’ve been so upset by what happened in the House of Lords.”
Leadbeater said an identical bill will be introduced in the next parliamentary session, preventing other lawmakers from blocking it again, as they can’t stop the same bill twice.
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