Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs (SACPA)

In February 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) ruled that people with "grievous and irremediable medical conditions" have the right to ask a doctor to help them die. The court gave the Federal Government one year to develop new laws and guidelines. Recently, a panel appointed by the previous Conservative Government released a report with recommendations on how to implement physician-assisted death in Canada. The present Liberal Government has yet to act on the SCC directive and were recently given a four month extendtion of the deadline. The speaker will argue that the SCC decision will set a dangerous precedent and that Parliament must first use the notwithstanding clause to continue to equally protect every Canadian. Then Parliament and Provincial governments must commit to: Improving access to end-of-life care, creating awareness to change social attitudes towards the lives of people with disabilities and the reality of elder abuse, and focusing on effective suicide prevention strategies to provide t