The Care Not Killing Alliance responds to Baroness Warnock's publicised views on euthanasia for patients with dementia.
It is absolutely outrageous for Baroness Warnock to imply that people with dementia should be put to death because they place an economic or emotional burden on others. We should in fact be doing the exact opposite of what she suggests and investing more heavily into the prevention and treatment of dementia and into the care and support of people with dementia and their families.
The willingness to bear one another's burdens is one of the key marks of a just, civilized and caring society. The fact that there are people of influence holding Warnock's views is truly frightening but underlines powerfully why we need to work harder to oppose prejudice towards people suffering from mental incapacity, to foster and create communities where time, energy and resources are expended to help those with special needs and to put in place strong mechanisms to protect those in our society who are most vulnerable to exploitation. (Dr Peter Saunders, Campaign Director)
