Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have an opportunity to participate in the second reading debate on Bill C-14, the proposed legislative approach to medical assistance in dying in our country.
This is a historic bill, and it tackles an issue that is of great interest and importance to many Canadians. It is also one that raises divergent and deeply held personal views, which is why broad consultations with a variety of groups and organizations were essential before reforms could be developed and considered by Parliament.
Members are aware that a special joint committee of the House of Commons and the Senate recently studied this issue, in January and February of this year, and in the context of that study, had the opportunity to hear from 61 witnesses and consider over 100 written briefs.
Other recent consultation initiatives were undertaken by the federal external panel on options for a legislative response to Carter in Canada, from July to December 2015, and the provincial and territorial experts advisory group on physician-assisted dying, from August to December 2015. Each panel met with representatives of dozens of stakeholder groups and received numerous written submissions from key organizations, including the medical sector, disability rights groups, legal and civil liberty organizations, and faith groups. Furthermore, many of the organizations that were consulted held extensive consultations with their own membership, some over the span of years, and shared the benefit of those with these panels.
Of course, we are also indebted to the years of consultations undertaken by the provincial government in Quebec leading up to its own legislation in this area. The extensive work that those in Quebec undertook was carefully considered, and I thank them for their leadership on this issue. It informs this proposed legislation as well.
The broad and in-depth consultations that have occurred over the past year across this country have undoubtedly enriched the policy development process that has led to the introduction of Bill C-14. I am pleased to see in the document entitled “Legislative Background: Medical Assistance in Dying (Bill C-14)” which accompanied the bill and was tabled in this place by the Minister of Justice, that the development of the proposed legislation was informed by the evidence before all levels of court in the Carter case by available Canadian and international research, social science evidence, governmental reports, and parliamentary studies.
That document also tells us that it was informed by the experience of existing international medical assistance in dying regimes around the world, as well as by numerous recent consultation activities on medical assistance in dying, including the work of the special joint committee, the federal external panel, the provincial-territorial expert advisory group, the work of the Canadian Medical Association and the College of Family Physicians of Canada, as well as the work of the provincial colleges of physicians and surgeons.
The consultation process has been robust and comprehensive. This has provided an opportunity for a variety of stakeholders from diverse perspectives to share their views and to reflect the views of other stakeholders who may not necessarily share their point of view.
I would like to briefly outline the considerations that some of the key stakeholders have raised with respect to this issue. One of the key stakeholder groups on this issue, given the active role they will be playing in response to requests for medical assistance in dying, is the medical profession, and by that I mean the various types of health care providers, such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists, nurse practitioners as well as their regulatory bodies.
The importance of this issue for the medical profession was underscored by a representative of the Canadian Medical Association who appeared before the special joint committee and testified that medical assistance in dying is a difficult and controversial issue for the medical profession, that it represents a sea change for physicians in Canada.
Many of the people who spoke from the perspective of the medical profession emphasized the need for clarity in the law so that health care providers are crystal clear about what is permissible and what is not permissible in providing medical assistance in dying, and that federal legislation is needed to ensure national consistency.
I am pleased that the proposed legislation responds to that request for clarity and consistency. Bill C-14 comprehensively sets out who can do what and to whom, and which safeguards are to be complied with. Moreover, as it is a proposed amendment to the Criminal Code, it would apply equally across Canada.
The unanimous decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in Carter focused on the role physicians could play in medical assistance in dying. I am pleased to see that in Bill C-14 explicit exemptions are also included for other types of health care providers, such as nurse practitioners, pharmacists, or other persons who would assist a medical practitioner or nurse practitioner with a request for medical assistance in dying.
This is responsive to the wealth of information received from representatives of nursing to pharmacist organizations in the course of various consultations.
Another important request that was raised by the medical profession was the need to respect the conscience rights of health care professionals who may object to providing medical assistance in dying. I would highlight that the bill makes explicit reference in the preamble to respecting the personal convictions of health care providers.
I will also note that the government has committed to working with the provinces and territories to support access to medical assistance in dying by connecting willing health care providers with patients. To me, this strikes an appropriate balance between supporting patient access or respecting the conscience rights of health care providers, as well as the jurisdiction of the provinces and territories.
Lastly, the medical profession, among other stakeholders, expressed a strong desire for a national monitoring system for medical assistance in dying. I am very pleased to see that Bill C-14 would empower the Minister of Health to make regulations to establish a federal monitoring system, with the associated requirements for health care providers who would be responsible for handling requests for medical assistance in dying to provide information for the purpose of that monitoring.
Several key stakeholders, and in particular disability rights groups, raised the necessity of robust safeguards to protect the right to life of every person in our country. This of course includes people who are ill, elderly, or disabled. Some national disability rights groups also indicated that stringent safeguards were needed to ensure the voluntary nature of a request for medical assistance in dying, free from any pressure or coercion, and based on informed consent, the heart of which was ensuring the patient had the capacity to make the decision in question.
The consultations that have occurred thus far, and the ones that will continue over the coming week, are crucial to ensuring we get this bill right. I am very much looking forward to the testimony that will be presented before the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights this coming week, a committee of which I am a member. I am eager to gage the opinions of all sides of the medical assistance in dying debate. I look forward to working with my committee colleagues to bring this bill back to Parliament and have a sound framework in place by the June 6 Supreme Court of Canada deadline.
Parliament has debated the issue of medical assistance in dying on several occasions over the past two decades. Each time, it was not able to support amendments to the Criminal Code to make this a reality for Canadians. The time has come to make this change. I believe this proposed legislation should be passed. I agree with the legislative background paper the Minister of Justice has tabled, and its statements that this proposed legislation strikes an appropriate balance between the autonomy of those seeking access to medical assistance and the interests of vulnerable persons in our society. I would urge all members of the House to support the second reading of Bill C-14.