Mr. Speaker, I believe that Canadians need to have the option of how to end their lives. Unfortunately, my father did not have that option. When he was diagnosed with an advanced case of cancer, we consulted with the doctor and asked for options. We were basically given very interesting options. We were told that if we were religious, to go pray, and if we were science believers, to go bet on the science that in 5% of the cases like my father's the person would die from a heart attack. The other 95% would suffer deeply and go through organ failure. Whether we believe in science or not, we were lucky that he made the transition as a result of a heart attack when he passed away.
During the town hall in York Region, I was greeted by a couple from Richmond Hill who shared their story with me. The husband was suffering exactly the same stage of cancer as my father and both of our stories really resonated with each other.
I believe that Canadians should have this option. My father would have suffered much less had he not experienced that prolonged mental distress. The government has announced that it will appoint one or more independent bodies to study advance requests in the context of medical assistance in dying. I look forward to being part of that consultation process and I invite all members in the House to participate. As I said, this is a journey of a hundred thousand miles and this is the first step. We have to take that first step, but we need to stay engaged.