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House Hansard - 283

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 15, 2024 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 283 - Feb/15/24
Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)
  • Feb/15/24 1:56:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am struck with how, during this debate, we have heard so much technical and bureaucratic language from the government. It masks what is fundamentally an ethical and moral issue, that is, the just way to treat the most vulnerable within our society. This discourse about maybe we are not ready or maybe we will be ready masks the more important underlying question of whether we should ever have the state involved in facilitating the suicide of those with mental health challenges. On this side of the House, we say a firm no, not now, not ever. I want to ask the member if he is concerned about the dramatic growth in the rates of those opting for MAID in Canada, opting for it perhaps under pressure or in other circumstances. We have seen, since this practice started in Canada, dramatic increases every single year. Is the member concerned about that, or is he totally fine with this idea of exponential growth in the rates?
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Context: House Hansard - 283 - Feb/15/24
Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)
  • Feb/15/24 4:15:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will pick up on the comment that my colleague just made, that essentially there are instances of zealous practitioners who may be going very far in terms of determining that someone is eligible when they should not be. Part of the problem with the euthanasia regime we have is that it allows doctor shopping. It allows somebody to find two doctors who may not be representative at all and may not be the attending physician, and asking them, “Would you sign this, please?” They may get approved even if they should not meet the criteria. Conservatives proposed in the last election platform that we should require MAID assessors to complete MAID assessor training to ensure full awareness of and compliance with the laws and best practices around MAID. Would the member be supportive of the proposal that we put forward to have specific MAID assessor training to try to have more consistency and less arbitrariness and fewer instances of people shopping around?
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Context: House Hansard - 283 - Feb/15/24
Mr. Garnett Genuis
  • Feb/15/24 4:31:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The member opposite is, of course, breaking a number of rules all at once, as he does. He is far afield of the topic, number one. Number two—
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Context: House Hansard - 283 - Feb/15/24
Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)
  • Feb/15/24 4:59:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the government about its so-called “MAID policy”. Its members have said repeatedly, especially as it relates to mental health challenges, that their MAID policy would aim to exclude those who are suicidal, but I want to understand something from the government: Is not any person who requests MAID suicidal, simply by definition, since they are requesting MAID?
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