Almost all Conservative members of Parliament voted in favour of a bill that they claim will safeguard medical professionals’ right to practise their professions in accordance with their consciences.
The private member’s bill received support from the majority of Tories, including its new leader Pierre Poilievre, but was defeated in the House of Commons on Wednesday by a vote of 203 to 115.
Kelly Block, a Conservative lawmaker from rural Saskatchewan who is a member of the party’s social conservative wing and an advocate for conscience rights, presented the bill.
The proposed proposal, which intended to amend the Criminal Code to shield medical personnel from having to “directly or indirectly” participate in medical help in dying, was opposed by the ruling Liberals, as well as by MPs from the NDP and Bloc Quebecois.
114 votes were cast in favour of the bill by the Conservatives.
According to the website for the House of Commons, MPs Eric Duncan, Dave Epp, and Richard Martel, as well as one of the party’s two deputy leaders, Melissa Lantsman, were not registered to vote.
Block’s bill was also endorsed by Independent MP Kevin Vuong, who represents the Spadina-Fort York district in downtown Toronto. He appears to be the only non-Conservative to have done so.
According to Block’s plan, it would have been illegal to threaten or fire a healthcare professional who declines to perform a medically assisted death or make a referral for the service.
The Liberal administration has long maintained that no law it has passed obligates medical personnel to “give or help to deliver” an operation that goes against their personal views.
According to the Ontario Court of Appeal, permitting physicians to refuse to refer patients would stigmatise already vulnerable people and limit their access to medical care.
Despite this, many Conservatives believe there are insufficient protections for individuals working in the healthcare industry and criticise how the federal Liberal government is managing its policy on medical assistance in dying.
Following the vote on Wednesday, Block issued a statement expressing concern that given the procedure’s expanding intentions, medical practitioners “may be coerced to participate.”
After Block’s proposal was defeated on Wednesday, the anti-abortion group Campaign Life Coalition, which supports Conservative MPs who also oppose the surgery, praised Block.
In the past, proponents of conscience rights have made it plain that they believe these rights should encompass a variety of medical procedures, such as gender reassignment surgery and abortion.
Poilievre casts a vote in favour of a Conservative MP’s failed effort to provide doctors the right to conscience.
About Author
