Southsea grandfather calls for change to assisted dying laws to relieve end of life 'agony' as huge petition sparks parliamentary debate

A TERMINALLY ill grandfather from Southsea is calling on the government to change the law around assisted dying ahead of a key debate, saying he doesn’t want to spend his final days ‘in agony’.
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MPs are set to debate assisted dying measures next Monday, after a petition from Dignity in Dying gained more than 155,800 signatures.

Terminally ill David Denison, 77, has backed calls for a change in the law, after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in April and then in June was told he had between three and six months left to live.

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David said he knows any changes to the law will come to late for him, but he is campaigning so that other terminally ill people have ‘control’ over their final moments alongside high quality end-of-life care.

David Denison, 77, has been given less than six months to live and has called on the government to change the law around assisted dying.David Denison, 77, has been given less than six months to live and has called on the government to change the law around assisted dying.
David Denison, 77, has been given less than six months to live and has called on the government to change the law around assisted dying.

The grandfather said: ‘I have lived a very full life; I’ve had several different careers, doing everything from flying planes to banking and accountancy, and lived in different countries. I love life and I don’t want to die, but I know that I am dying and I want control.

‘I don’t want to spend the final days of my life in agony, which is so often the case for people with pancreatic cancer. I don’t want my family’s last memories of me to be bad, I want them to be left with all the good memories of a life well lived.

‘Currently my options are very few, with Dignitas only open to those who can afford it, or possibly taking matters into my own hands, which is not something I should I have to consider.’

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He added: ‘I look forward to the debate on July 4 so that MPs can hear the stories of people like me, whose lives have been impacted by the blanket ban on assisted dying.’

Portsmouth South MP Stephen Morgan will be attending the debate to share David’s story in Parliament and voice his support for changing the legalisation around assisted dying

The Labour MP said: ‘I hope that sharing David’s story in Parliament will raise awareness and begin a national conversation about this sensitive but important issue. One that respects the sanctity of life, as well as the choices of those living it.’