Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Good evening, everyone.
My name is Ghislain Leblond, and I am 77 years old. I had the opportunity to spend most of my career in the public service, including as associate deputy minister in Ottawa and as deputy minister in Quebec City.
I had to retire at the age of 48 because I have a degenerative neuromuscular disease that paralyzes me. I have been in a wheelchair for 20 years, so you'll understand that tonight's discussion is of great interest to me.
I have also been a very active participant in the process that led to the adoption in Quebec of the Act respecting end‑of‑life care, including medical assistance in dying.
Given my situation, I am a potential candidate for MAID.
Thank you for having me.
Most importantly, I want to thank you for the work you're doing.
You are honouring your duty as members of Parliament and senators by tackling an issue as important as medical assistance in dying.
You're facing problems that aren't always easy to solve. Thank you for tackling the challenge.
You're a lucky bunch of people, because it's not given to everybody to have the opportunity to make decisions that will improve the lives of thousands of people, thousands of our fellow citizens, our fellow Canadians.
One of the things I'm interested in is the idea that people with physical disabilities need greater safeguards than the rest of the population. This is an idea that is floating around. I would like to talk to you about it in the discussion that will follow.
Thank you.