Hansard

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Yes, but, again, there is the question whether introducing such assistance in care homes puts pressure in the other direction, on people who do not wish to consider an assisted death. At the very heart of this is the personal nature of hospices, many of which are very small, w...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I thank the committee for its forbearance in allowing me to speak remotely. I have had to do a bit of juggling this afternoon. With regard to the amendments, I say up front that I think that Jackie Baillie’s amendment 53 is very important. Having previously spent some time ar...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I thank the Deputy First Minister for raising the issue and note the concerns both from the individual that she cites and from others.If we are considering passing the bill, we must understand what we are passing. Amendment 2 is not about forecasting and it certainly cannot be...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

Thank you, Presiding Officer. It is with a great deal of trepidation that I rise to speak to and move the first amendment.I begin by paying tribute to Liam McArthur for the way in which he has stewarded the bill through the Parliament. It is not an easy topic, but it is one th...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I wonder whether Jeremy Balfour might agree with me in that, although I understand the contention that precise prognosis is very difficult and is a matter of judgment, the reverse is also true: we are asking medical practitioners to interpret what we mean by the terms, as they...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

It is useful to follow Bob Doris. My amendments fall, like his, in multiple parts of the bill, so I ask for the committee’s forbearance. This group of amendments is very important. It is entitled “Assessments of the terminally ill adult”, and those are at the heart of what th...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Although I very much appreciate having a group entirely to myself, I think that, in some ways, these amendments should be considered with the amendments in the previous group. To my mind, there are two hugely important elements to the bill. The first is the judgment that will...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I support the amendments that have been lodged by Jackie Baillie, which have the support of the Royal College of Nursing. We must have clarity on roles. The final provision of the substance is particularly sensitive. It is also important that we have clarity about not only the...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Yes. It is certainly not nonsense to raise concerns about patient pathways. In any clinical circumstances, a patient journey and the degree to which it is patient-centred is of critical salience. We live in a world in which healthcare settings are very complex, terminology is ...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

12 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

This is quite a group of amendments to attempt to sum up, but I do not think we should be surprised by that because we are all aware of the delicate and sensitive nature of the doctor-patient relationship and we know that we are contemplating legislation that will enable somet...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

12 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I take the member’s point. I do not mean to use the term “death” in a way that would take away from the points that have been made. I note, however, that the chamber elected not to make suffering a condition for consideration of the issue.I accept that there is a point around ...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

12 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I thank Mr Balfour for his intervention. That is helpful.In a sense, I think that Parliament has accepted the principle. If we accept that it would not be right to raise the topic of assisted dying with an under-18-year-old, have we not already accepted that it is a sensitive ...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

12 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

At the start of stage 3 proceedings, I set out that the Parliament has a choice about whether it wants an expansive bill that permits certain acts, or a restrictive bill that puts in place safeguards and allows those acts to be taken only by exception. My amendments in this gr...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

11 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I agree with that. Sometimes, the nature and intensity of the diagnosis produce a very good-quality relationship, which is why, as I reflected at stage 2, the length of time is not a good proxy for that, because sometimes a short but intense doctor-patient relationship is much...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

11 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

So far in stage 3, there has been much discussion about the safeguards that might be provided for in the bill, but in reality that boils down to the judgment of two doctors.That might be the right way to proceed, but we need to be clear that the opinion of the co-ordinating me...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

11 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

Does Brian Whittle agree that this is not just about the particular circumstances that we are debating today? It is a good idea for us all to discuss with our loved ones potential health matters that might arise further down the line and what care and treatment options we migh...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I am happy to deal with that point. I actually disagree with it, because I believe that we must be frank about the fact that all the decisions and judgments that we are asking professionals to make in the course of the assisted death process will be subjective. There is no pos...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

Again, I thank members for a thoughtful discussion on the grouping. I did not intend to cover off every amendment in it, but I find myself somewhat compelled to comment on the discussion of Douglas Ross’s amendments. With regard to their focus and objective, they are well made...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

We are dealing with profound moral issues that are issues of conscience. Therefore, individual opt-outs and, indeed, organisational opt-outs are absolutely fundamental. I am not going to repeat many of the arguments on individual opt-outs that we have heard so far in this grou...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

Ruth Maguire makes the point excellently. Many people will be able to incorporate assisted dying into their practice. It would be wrong to say that it is a binary issue, but many people will be deeply troubled by it. What is more, many people working in a small environment wit...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

Further to Clare Haughey’s point, we are dealing with extending the possibility of ending an individual’s life. By definition, therefore, we are dealing with people who are contemplating ending their own life, so I fear that Douglas Ross is blundering into a tautology here. We...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I acknowledge that.I will deal with the points that have been raised. First, I say to Jackie Baillie that my amendments would certainly not expand the definition. My intention with amendment 1 is that the word “and” in the proposed new paragraphs makes it an additional require...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

The member makes a fair and important point, because we are dealing with complexities. We may all need to wrestle with, and accept, the fact that the decision may not be available to all people, because of its serious nature. All members will have to understand that we must ha...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

10 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I assure members that I will not be speaking at the beginning of every single grouping. It just happens that I got my amendments in early on these sections of the bill. In addition, I do not intend to rehearse much of what I said about the previous group of amendments, because...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

19 Aug 2020

Solicitors in the Supreme Courts of Scotland (Amendment) Bill: Preliminary Stage

I begin by thanking my colleagues. It has been a real pleasure to work on a private bill—indeed, it has been interesting, given that it is different from our usual work. I also thank the convener, Christine Grahame, for moving the motion and explaining the history of the socie...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

17 Dec 2020

Redress for Survivors (Historical Child Abuse in Care) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I begin by expressing a hope that, collectively, we live up to survivors’ expectations and that we meet their needs. It is difficult to articulate the injustice and suffering that the bill seeks to address. Over generations, countless children were placed in the care of auth...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

31 Mar 2022

Scotland’s Vision for Trade (Annual Report)

I thank the minister for providing prior sight of his statement. He is absolutely right to emphasise the importance of trade. Trade is fundamentally important if we want to see improved prosperity and, most importantly, an increased number of high-quality jobs, particularly a...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

13 May 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

It is a great privilege to follow Edward Mountain’s speech. I address my first remarks to my constituents. This is a debate unlike any other. It is a free vote, but given the importance of the debate, I say to my constituents that I take my responsibilities very seriously. My...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

13 May 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

In a sense, I understand the member’s point about the distinction. However, look at the case of Oregon, which has had legislation for 30 years but has not moved beyond terminal illness. Likewise, Switzerland, which has had similar legislation since the 1940s, has “terminal ill...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

13 May 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Will the member give way?

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

At the outset, I state that I broadly agree with much of what Jeremy Balfour has set out. To my mind, the debate has been marked by two substantial features both for those who are advocating for the bill and for those who are speaking against it, in that we all want to provide...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Will the member accept my point that, in principle, rather than necessarily establishing an accurate prognosis, setting a time limit is about trying to set a time boundary around the immediacy of the expectation of the end of life? Does he imagine that such time bands would at...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I understand the member’s point—you do not lodge an amendment that proposes a time boundary without thinking about such things. On the other hand, the principle is that we want the right to be exercised by people whose death is imminent. Jeremy Balfour put that in terms of wee...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I wonder whether Bob Doris would agree with me on this. There are two points here: one is the principle, and one concerns the technical drafting. On the principle, as he has pointed out, the policy memorandum seems to suggest that the bill is about providing a possibility for ...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I am very sympathetic to the member’s points about anorexia nervosa, and I think that we need to put safeguards in place in that respect. That said, I wonder whether there are technical problems with the reference to “voluntarily stopping eating and drinking”, given that the...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Will the member give way?

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I think that the member might be referring to my amendments in a later group, which would alter the age to 25. I hear what he is saying, but I wonder whether he thinks that there is a discussion to be had about the issue. He talks about rights but, earlier in his contribution,...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Bob was first.

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

04 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

My intervention is further to that point. I echo the questions that Bob Doris just raised and will add to them. As it stands, from the member’s understanding, what would prevent someone with a decade or more to live from exercising their rights under the bill? That question fo...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I will be speaking to a number of Jackie Baillie’s amendments today, and I ask members to bear with me as they hear more than they might have expected to hear from me. At last week’s meeting, we heard the concern that, although we can examine what is in the bill, what will be...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Those points are well made, but we must be clear about what amendment 66 would do and, critically, where it comes from. Jackie Baillie’s amendments were drafted in conjunction with the British Medical Association and other professional bodies, so it is not MSPs who are asking ...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I am grateful for your reflections on those points. Do you acknowledge that the amendments that have come from the professional bodies themselves reflect a need or desire from the professions that we strike a slightly different balance as to where not just training but qualifi...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

The amendments that I will speak to in this grouping fall into three substantive sub-categories: the first is on individual opt-outs, the second is on organisations and particular views in relation to hospices and care homes, and the third is on a register for psychiatrists. ...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

If I may, I will finish my sentence, at the very least. The concern is that, because of the intimate nature of hospices, practice with regard to one person may well interact with practice for others in the same context. We are talking about small settings where the small numb...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I understand the point and I recognise that this is complicated and delicate, but the flipside of that coin is that there is a very real concern among those in the hospice sector that, if what is proposed in the bill is undertaken, especially in small, intimate settings, the p...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Again, I would just say that the reverse could also be true. By not permitting that, you are, in effect, creating a mandate and therefore there is a concern that practice in palliative care will be inextricably altered by that practice. We need to listen to that concern.

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

That is very much at the heart of why I lodged amendment 20. It is one thing to propose a notional opt-out, either for individuals or for organisations but, especially for hospices, it may be that the practice becomes such that opting out would not be a financial practicality,...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I am sorry; is that an intervention?

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

11 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I understand Liam McArthur’s reluctance in relation to a full referral, but does he acknowledge that simply discussing options can sometimes be a little narrow? There needs to be the practical ability to act on those options. Does he agree that there is scope for looking at po...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

12 Nov 2025

Restraint and Seclusion in Schools (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Let us again be clear about what the bill would and would not do, and what the definitions would and would not do. The definitions are simply about providing the scope of practice around which there needs to be guidance from the Government. The bill does not state that anythin...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

Forgive me, convener. I move amendment 7.

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I have nothing further to add. Amendment 7, by agreement, withdrawn. Amendment 112 not moved.

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I note what Liam McArthur is saying, and in a sense, he is right, but would he also observe that those amendments were lodged following the RCN requesting them, so the profession itself is asking for those restrictions? Why does he think that those observations—and, indeed, re...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I wonder whether Brian Whittle would agree with me that there are two fundamental points here. First, it is important that safeguards are put in place, especially where those issues have been raised by the people who would be delivering the bill. Secondly, as we proceed, given...

Daniel Johnson Lab Committee

18 Nov 2025

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

I will be speaking to three sets of amendments in this group. Amendments 260, 282 and 286 are in Michael Marra’s name, amendments 18 and 19 are in my name, as are amendments 271, 272, 14 and 15. I should say at this point that I have spoken to more amendments in my colleagues’...

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

17 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill

If one thing is clear, it is that the whole Parliament is united in—frankly, almost nauseating—tribute to Liam McArthur. However, the tribute is deserved. On a very personal level, and thinking back to our most recent conversation about the bill, I just wish that disagreeing w...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

17 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill

Would the member accept that a number of the safeguards that are present in many parts of Australia are not present in the bill in terms of oversight? I am not sure that it is correct to say that the bill before us would be the most safeguarded legislation.

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

17 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill

In a sense, I agree with what Liam McArthur says about section 104 orders coming back to Parliament. However, does he agree that much of the detail about how the bill will work in practice will rest in the guidance and that Parliament is being given a yes or no option when man...

Daniel Johnson Lab Chamber

17 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill

Will Patrick Harvie give way?

Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Lab Chamber

13 Mar 2026

Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

I will speak briefly in support of Liz Smith’s amendments in the group. At stage 2, I proposed amendments that would have created a commission—a cross-party body—to oversee the guidance. My reason for doing that is that I believe strongly that much of what we are talking about...