Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Good morning to Dr. Crowe and good evening to our doctors "down under" in New Zealand. This has been a very informative session. We have examined the template in Australia and New Zealand. The different compartments, so to speak, around assisted dying have been in evolution in the past four to five years. In the case of New Zealand, it has been by a popular vote, where the majority of people supported legislation on assisted dying. Obviously, we are having this debate in this country. The vanguard of the debate at the moment is in this committee and it will be coming to a conclusion relatively soon. We are drawing up parameters and possibilities around assisted dying, where it can be legislated for. I, for one, hope that assisted dying can be legislated for and that this committee supports legislation.

One of the templates we should consider is the New Zealand and Australia model, in terms of those who can avail of assisted dying and those who cannot. That is very important because there is a lot of scaremongering around this issue. General opinion in Britain and Ireland is that the majority of people support legislative change, when all the facts are put on the table.

If somebody wants to avail of voluntary assisted dying, could Dr. McLaren take us through the process? Do they contact their GP and then, via the GP, a process starts via the VAD specialists?