'My husband wouldn't want others to suffer like him'

A woman whose husband died in "excruciating pain" said proposed laws to legalise assisted dying on the Isle of Man "would stop the suffering for those who want the choice".

The Assisted Dying Bill 2023 completed its passage through Tynwald on Tuesday, making it the first parliament in the British Isles to send such a bill for Royal Assent.

Sue Biggerstaff's husband Simon died in May 2022, aged 65, after being diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) the previous July.

She described his final weeks as "heartbreaking to watch" because the "constant pain he was in was unbearable and nobody should have to go through that".

Under the proposals there will be strict eligibility criteria: People who request an assisted death will have to be over 18, have lived on the island for at least five years and have been told by doctors they have less than 12 months to live.

The individual must also have the legal capacity to make the decision, have the decision verified by two independent doctors, and be registered with a Manx GP.

Opponents have said a change in the law would threaten vulnerable people, voicing concerns over coercion.

They have also said it would add pressure on the already-stretched health service and doctors could choose to leave because they disagree with the practice.

But supporters, like Sue, have said the proposed law change would prevent prolonged suffering and give people a choice.

She described her husband as a "gentle and caring family man", and explained that the couple had saved for a home in Spain which they planned to spend half of their time visiting during retirement.

But Simon was diagnosed with MND in July 2021 and within a month was paralysed from the neck down.

Sue said he also developed open wounds and was told "Simon's body was decomposing while he was still alive".

He was given morphine by medics "in both legs, and both arms and patches, but nothing stopped the excruciating pain", she added.

"He lay there saying will you please make it stop." Simon, 65, died 11 months after his diagnosis.

Following the latest step by the Manx parliament, Sue said: "Nobody should have to suffer like that, but now we're on the way to stopping it, if people want that choice".

She said: "I feel Simon would be pleased that I'm trying stop other people having to go though what we went through."

"My husband wouldn't have wanted others to suffer like he did."

Among the other campaigners on the Isle of Man who have passionately backed the bill is Millie Blenkinsop-French, whose son James died of neck cancer at the age of 51.

She said a pea-sized lump "grew and grew until it burst open... they couldn't operate because it was attached to the main artery in his neck".

"He suffered the most horrific death - it was awful watching him die."

"James was my child, he was 51, but he was still my baby."

Millie, who has spent years fighting for this legislation, said "I just wish the option had been available for James, because he would have chosen it without a doubt".

She said: "His story, along with hundreds of other stories, are making people aware of what some people go through, and why there was a need for assisted dying".

The latest step by Tynwald "will have brought a lot of comfort not just to me, but all those other mothers, sisters, husbands, and all the other people who have had to watch their loved ones die," she added.

There are still many stages to clear before the bill can become law, including being granted Royal Assent and the creation of secondary legislation and the codes of practice.

If the legislative process is successful, the bill's mover Alex Allinson MHK has said he hoped an assisted dying service could be in place by 2027.

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