On Thursday 30 January, Portugal’s Parliament agreed to debate on the decriminalization of physician-assisted death in their country. A bill to allow euthanasia and assisted suicide will be discussed on 20 February. Pedro Filipe Soares, parliamentary leader of the BE, Andre Silva, PAN MP, and Pedro Delgado Alves, vice-president of the PS, said they
believe they can pass a new law this time, unlike two years ago.
Expectations
The bill is a a project of the Left Bloc (BE), Socialist Party (PS), People-Animals-Nature (PAN) and Ecologist Party “The Greens” (PEV)).“ We think there is a large majority in the parliament to approve the bills”, said Filipe Soares, who believes in a favorable majority. Pedro Delgado Alves said that it was essential to resume this initiative and that after the 2019 legislation today there is a majority in another direction, different from the previous one.
Earlier attempts
In 2018, the parliament debated projects to decriminalize medically assisted death of the PS, BE, PAN and Greens, but they all failed.
Portugal