Bulletin 22: Professor George Hampel Supports PAD Bill

1th August 2008

Professor The Hon. George Hampel AM QC, former Justice of the Supreme Court, recently said of the Physician Assisted Dying (PAD) Bill, which itself was written under guidance of Professor David Kelly, former Chairman of the Victorian Law Reform Commission:

“The proposed legislation would enable doctors to help people in a professional and open, but controlled way, to end their misery.  The safeguards provided are impressive and adequate to protect the sufferer, his or her family, the doctors involved and the community.

“It is, I think, in the community’s interests that, while life is respected, it can be ended by those who suffer intolerably and wish to exercise their free choice.  It is important that this right can be exercised in a controlled way, without subterfuge and misuse.”

In fact, the Bill contains more safeguards than the Northern Territory Rights of the Terminally Ill Act 1995 and the Oregon Death With Dignity Act 1997, combined:

Professor David Kelly says, “Simplicity and transparency are not always features of legislation. The Bill has been written in such a way as to ensure that it can be understood by as wide an audience as possible—an overriding principle.  Some Members of Parliament may be uncomfortable at first, simply because they are not used to it.”