Jersey has become just the second place in the British Isles to approve assisted dying after its States members backed it by 32 votes to 16.
It is expected that the new law will take around 18 months to fully come into force, as it still requires Royal assent, but when it does come in it will provide a framework for terminally ill adults living in Jersey to end their lives under carefully defined conditions and strict safeguards.
The legislation, put forward by the island’s Council of Ministers, sets out who could be eligible, how the process would work and what checks would apply.
The proposals came after the island’s politicians in 2024 voted in favour of setting up a service for adults with terminal illnesses and neurodegenerative diseases, which built on a 2021 decision in which the Assembly supported assisted dying “in principle”.
How does Jersey’s law compare to what’s being considered in the UK?
Other jurisdictions are also grappling with the matter of assisted dying – the Isle of Man is also on track to introduce it, but has been awaiting Royal Assent for nearly a year.
Meanwhile, in Westminster, the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is a private members’ bill which proposes to legalise assisted suicide for terminally ill adults in England and Wales.
Humanists UK, which was supportive of the decision in Jersey, described several elements of each as “almost identical”, such as the fact that an applicant must:
- Be an adult
- Be terminally ill
- Have a clear mental capacity and a settled wish to die
- Be assessed by two independent doctors
- Be ordinarily resident for at least 12 months in the relevant jurisdiction
- Be able to withdraw or cancel at any point along the way
Both also introduce new criminal offences for abuse of the system as well as conscientious objection or a ‘right to refuse’ protections for healthcare professionals.
However, the “core differences” are as follows, the organisation said:
- “Both Bills are for people with six months left to live or fewer, but the Jersey Bill allows people with a neurodegenerative condition like motor neurone disease to apply if they have twelve months left to live
- The Jersey Bill includes a subjective suffering element: the person believes they cannot bear the suffering the condition is causing (or is expected to cause)
- In addition to the two doctors, the Westminster Bill requires the applicant to be approved by a panel of a social worker, a lawyer, and a psychiatrist; the Jersey Bill does not require this
- The Jersey Bill has one 14-day reflection period that can be overridden if the person will die imminently. The Westminster Bill has two reflection periods, the first is seven days, the second is 14 days; only the second can be overridden.”
The move was roundly welcomed by various campaign groups such as Dignity in Dying, Humanists UK, and My Death, My Decision.
Deputy Gavin St Pier, who is on the board of Dignity in Dying, said he is “absolutely delighted” with Jersey’s decision.
“I’m not surprised having watched the evolution of the story there over a number of years,” he said. “I think it was inevitable, but I’m pleased.
“It’s been a long journey for them, but they’ve gone about it in a very disciplined way and in a very considered way. They’ve been looking at all the detail, they’ve had a citizens panel, they’ve looked at the ethics of this, so full credit to them, I congratulate them.”
Guernsey was the first place in the British Isles to vote on assisting dying legislation in 2018.
The motion, brought to the States by Deputy St Pier, was rejected by 24 votes to 14.
Proposition five of Deputy St Pier’s requete was the only section approved.
It concerned improvements in community, services, palliative care and end of life care among other matters.
That was approved by 1-37 with only then-Alderney Representative Louis Jean voting against.
Since then, work has continued in the background to forge changes in the way Guernsey’s offers palliative care.
Late last year it was announced that the Health & Social Care Committee and Les Bourgs Hospice have established the ‘Palliative and End-of-Life Care Partnership Group’.
This body, comprising representatives from the public, private, and charitable sectors, is tasked with co-designing a five-year strategy for the Bailiwick.
Deputy St Pier thinks Guernsey will soon go even further than improvements in palliative care and will move closer towards introducing assisted dying legislation.
I said in 2018, and I’ve said it since, and I’ll say it again – it is an absolutely inevitable social development in many places, including Guernsey.
deputy gavin st pier
“I think with the Isle of Man and Jersey now over the line, and England and Wales are pretty close, and obviously subject to some shenanigans within the House of Lords, but Scotland is also due to vote fairly soon, so as I said in 2018, and I’ve said it since, and I’ll say it again – it is an absolutely inevitable social development in many places, including Guernsey.
“It is only a question of time, and I hope we will see it in Guernsey sooner rather than later.”
Despite the changes happening elsewhere, Deputy St Pier said he isn’t sure when Guernsey will allow assisted dying.
“I’m not sure,” he admitted. “I’ve said I’ll be happy to lead a Requete and I think the Jersey model is a good template for us so having had them get it over the line it’s now for those of us who are interested here to pick it up and go again, but I’m not going to put a timeline on that as there’s plenty else going on as well.”