It is rare that Stephen Harper and Jack Layton find themselves on the same side of a contentious issue. But that happened on April 21st when MPs overwhelmingly voted after three days of debate to defeat a Bloc Quebecois bill that would legalize euthanasia in Canada. 

MPs from the three national parties all understood the dangers of this Private Members’ Bill, called C-384.  They all grasped that this legislation would inevitably endanger the lives of elderly or terminally ill Canadians who still had a will to live.  If euthanasia is legalized, people will be encouraged to die to save hospital budget money, to die to end loneliness and to die for the convenience of those around them.

Canada should not legalize euthanasia. What we should do is make palliative care a priority in our health care system. Those individuals who are in the most need of comfort at the end of their lives should receive all that we as a society can give.

I’m Brad Trost, your Member of Parliament in Saskatoon-Humboldt. You can call my office in Saskatoon at 975-6133 or drop by our two offices to visit: Saskatoon Monday-Friday or Humboldt Tuesday and Wednesday. I always appreciate your feedback.