Health Secretary Wes Streeting orders staff to look into costs of introducing assisted dying
by Emma Soteriou · LBCBy Emma Soteriou
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has asked staff to look at the potential cost of implementing any change in the law on assisted dying.
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Mr Streeting has suggested that there may need to be cuts to other NHS services if the assisted dying bill is brought in.
The Health Secretary - who plans to vote against the bill later this month - also said there was a "chilling slippery slope argument" if people felt compelled to end their own lives as a cost-saving measure.
"Now that we've seen the Bill published, I've asked my department to look at the costs that would be associated with providing a new service to enable assisted dying to go forward, because I'm very clear that regardless of my own personal position or my own vote, my department and the whole government will respect the will of Parliament if people vote for assisted dying," he said.
"That work is now under way, so I can't give you a precise figure today."
Read more: Brits want new assisted dying laws to go even further, poll reveals
Kim Leadbeater says the Government is juggling 'a delicate balance' on assisted dying
Mr Streeting was asked about the costs associated with assisted dying as a new service for patients, but also whether there may be savings - potentially - if patients need less care because they choose to end their own lives.
He said: "You do touch on the slippery slope argument, which is the potential for cost savings if people choose to opt for assisted dying rather than stay in the care of the care providers or the NHS.
"I think that is a chilling slippery slope argument, and I would hate for people to opt for assisted dying because they think they're saving someone somewhere ... money, whether that's relatives or the NHS.
"And I think that's one of the issues that MPs are wrestling with as they decide how to cast their vote. But this is a free vote, the Government's position is neutral.
"The Prime Minister is very clearly studying the Bill before deciding on his own position.
"And I have enormous respect for Kim Leadbeater (who is introducing the Bill) and many of my friends and colleagues who are taking a different view to me, including people I normally agree with on almost everything else."
Tory MP says the assisted dying issue should be given more time and consideration
It came after Mr Streeting delivered a speech to the NHS Providers conference in Liverpool, said there were "choices and trade-offs", adding that "any new service comes at the expense of other competing pressures and priorities".
He added: "Now that doesn't mean people should vote against it on that basis.
"People need to weigh up this choice in the way that we're weighing up all these other choices at the moment.
"And you know, the point I made in my speech is, you know this is a system that always uses the word 'and' and 'more' and I think people can see the state of public finances, the state of our public services, and we do need to be in the business of making choices."
Downing Street would not be drawn into saying whether Mr Streeting was right to say a new assisted dying law could come at the expense of other NHS services.
Asked about his comments, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "Ultimately this is a matter for Parliament to decide and that is why it is going to be a free vote, and Parliament will debate the principles and merits of assisted dying and the issues surrounding the Bill."
On whether Mr Streeting was in line with the guidance from the Cabinet Secretary, which says "though ministers need not resile from previously stated views when directly asked about them, they should exercise discretion and should not take part in the public debate", the spokesman said: "The Cabinet Secretary's letter recognised the need for ministers not to resile from previously stated views, they understood that MPs across the House will need to be able to explain to their constituents their position and the PM understands it's an incredibly emotive issue, and understandably, MPs have strong views on it and that is why it is ultimately a free vote."
Put to him that the Health Secretary is changing his "previously stated views" because he backed the last attempt to change the law, the spokesman said: "Ultimately this is a matter for Parliament to decide and that is why it is going to be a free vote and Parliament will debate the principles and merits of assisted dying and the issues surrounding the Bill."
He added: "That's why this issue is fraught with a number of ethical considerations as well as practical considerations. This is a finely balanced judgment."