Paul Blomfield, the Labour MP for Sheffield Central, is speaking to Sophy Ridge about assisted dying – after he lost his terminally ill father to suicide.
He says the act is “illegal”, and even “discussing their plans would make family members complicit – and of course some people have been prosecuted for that”.
In a moving interview, Mr Blomfield says he wants to see a “change in the law which gives people choice – which means that for people who have a terminal diagnosis of six months or less and know the end is certain, that they can choose the point at which they pass instead of, in many cases, having to live out a fairly miserable death”.
He then shares the story of his father, Harry, who took his own life.
“He was brought up in poverty, the war changed it for him because he became an RAF pilot and that opened up opportunities,” Mr Blomfield says.
“He had a very good life and he enjoyed it.
“He was a great father. I think he would want me to talk about his death because he always believed in giving people choice. In a sense, that should have given me an indication of what he might do after he was given a terminal diagnosis. I didn’t really factor it in.”
Mr Blomfield says Harry remained “positive” after his diagnosis of terminal lung cancer, and so the news of his death was a “shock”.
The MP says the diagnosis itself was a “shock for him, and it was for us”.
He adds he was “walking between meetings” in Westminster when he heard of his father’s death, and immediately travelled back to Sheffield.
The night before, he says: “We had a perfectly normal conversation.”
Mr Blomfield adds that a lot of the discussion on assisted dying should move to what the law “already does” to people – and the “misery it causes”.
He says this matter causes “deep harm” for people.
“If the law had been different… he could have talked to us, we’d have planned together, he’d have probably lived longer.
“I think he took the decision to go prematurely because he wanted to act while he still could.”
Source: Sky News