Jersey end-of-life care law approved

A new law that will place a statutory duty on the health minister to provide end-of-life care has been approved by the States Assembly.

It was decided in 2024 that, before bringing an assisted dying law to the assembly, the health minister should bring an end-of-life law.

Current Health Minister Tom Binet said the law meant that he and future health ministers would be legally obliged to provide end-of-life care for the last 12 months of anyone's life.

Deputy Louise Doublet, who chairs the Assisted Dying Review Panel, said the law would provide real choice for people who were dying.

The law was passed almost unanimously with 44 votes for and two votes against.

Doublet said: "It mirrors the assisted dying legislation and provides some reassurance that there will be real choice for people who are dying; that they can choose that end-of-life care and it will be available to them and, if they need to, they could choose the assisted dying route.

"There needs to be a real choice there and that's why end-of-life care is just as important."

Politicians will vote on whether to approve the assisted dying law in this States sitting.

Binet explained that end-of-life care would be provided in a variety of settings.

He said: "It's a care package for people in various settings, be that hospice, hospital, care home or in their own home.

"Because of the assisted dying debate, more money is being put into end-of-life care - I think £3m a year of extra money.

"We are well down the road of providing that care already, so this was about establishing a law to make sure that gets maintained."

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