The Voluntary Euthanasia Tea Lady invited to stand back

From noted.co.nz I have just received this perceptive view on Maggie ("Tea Lady") Barrie's blusterous opposition  to the Bill that most New Zealanders would like to see adopted.  

"As for Maggie Barry, her shortcomings as an opponent of assisted dying were again on full show last December after David Seymour released a (70 pg) report suggesting amendments to his bill.

"She was obviously blindsided by his recommendation that, in response to public concern, the bill should be amended to be available only to those with a terminal illness (removing access for those with “a grievous and irremediable condition”); explicitly exclude eligibility on the grounds of mental health conditions and disabilities alone; and incorporate the palliative care bill sponsored by Maggie Barry herself.

"Barry’s televised bluster in response to his eminently reasonable but clearly unexpected news was simply embarrassing to watch. She dismissed Seymour’s suggested amendments as an “extraordinary flight of fancy”, “publicity seeking” and accused him of “being cute”.

"It is clear that her opposition to the End of Life Choice Bill — centred on alleged risks to the vulnerable — is implacable and no safeguards or restrictions could ever be sufficient to satisfy her.  Indeed, it seems highly likely that even if every assisted death were filmed and the evidence presented immediately to the police to show the dying patient willingly took the lethal medication themselves after all the necessary precautions and paperwork had been observed — as happens at Dignitas’s clinics in Zurich — Barry would still claim the safeguards were inadequate.

From the short public interaction that I had with her (My blog June 29 2018) I would have to concur. But whereas a few months ago I invited her to stay out of the public domain as a member of the Justice Committee, perhaps I should now encourage her to carry on just as she has been doing. Even the National Party must recognise that they have a loose cannon on the deck on this particular issue...