The case came before Antrim Crown Court today.
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11 Dec 2025
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11 Dec 2025
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Archbishop Eamon Martin
Archbishop Eamon Martin has urged the North's MPs to reject the assisted suicide bill when it comes before the House of Commons.
Archbishop Martin's call comes after Foyle MP confirmed that he will be voting in favour of the bill.
Mr Eastwood said that his decision was influenced by "all the people that I have known who have had difficult, bad deaths".
The former SDLP leader added that he was confident that "there are enough safeguards in this law".
On Friday MPs will vote on a private members bill to give terminally ill people in England and Wales the right to choose to end their life.
Assisted dying is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland.
Archbishop Martin said the passing of the bill would facilitate a change in the law to permit assisted suicide in Northern Ireland.
He said: “For all those who cherish a culture of life across these islands, the introduction of law to permit assisted suicide is an affront to a safe and protective society. Today, I am strongly appealing to MPs from Northern Ireland to appose this assisted suicide Bill when they vote on it tomorrow in the House of Commons.
"As a society we are defined by the extent to which we care for our most vulnerable persons including those suffering from disabilities, terminal illness or otherwise nearing the end of life.
"While this is a Gospel imperative, it is noteworthy that medical and healthcare professionals are also gravely concerned at an evolving political ideology which would interfere with their calling to ‘do no harm’ and which would legally erode the right to life at all stages.”
The proposed legislation says that anyone who wants to end their life must:
Be over 18 and live in England and Wales, and have been registered with a GP for at least 12 months
Have the mental capacity to make the choice and be deemed to have expressed a clear, settled and informed wish, free from coercion or pressure
Be expected to die within six months
Make two separate declarations, witnessed and signed, about their wish to die
Satisfy two independent doctors that they are eligible - with at least seven days between each assessment
Under the proposals, a High Court judge would have to rule each time a person makes a request to end their life.
After the judge's ruling, a patient would have to wait 14 days before acting.
A doctor would prepare the substance being used to end the patient's life, but the person would take it themselves. The bill does not say which drug would be used.
It would be illegal to coerce someone into declaring they want to end their life, with a possible 14-year prison sentence.
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