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National Post

Liberals show no signs of limiting MAID despite 'extremely concerned' UN report

OTTAWA — Ottawa is giving no sign that it intends to amend existing legislation on medical assistance in dying — something a UN committee called for earlier this spring. Article content The federal minister responsible for disabilities spoke at a hearing of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities last week, about two months after the committee called on Canada to repeal the 2021 law that expanded eligibility for assisted dying to those whose deaths were not reasonably foreseeable. Article content Article content Article content Jobs and Families Minister Patty Hajdu gave a speech at the UN last Tuesday to mark 15 years since Canada ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Article content Article content 'It's about, for me, making relationships in this space and making sure that I have a really strong connection with the community, which I think is really important to be a good minister,' she said in an interview after the speech. The report said the committee is 'extremely concerned' about Canada's policy on track 2 medical assistance in dying. Article content '(T)he concept of 'choice' creates a false dichotomy, setting up the premise that if persons with disabilities are suffering, it is valid for (Canada) to enable their death without providing safeguards that guarantee the provision of support,' the report said. Article content In a written statement, a spokesperson for Hajdu said the government thanks the committee for its report. Article content Article content 'MAID is a deeply personal choice. We will make sure that the rights of persons with disabilities are upheld and protected,' said Jennifer Kozelj. Article content Article content Disability rights groups in Canada have argued the law singles out people with disabilities who are suffering because they're unable to access proper support. Article content Last September, Inclusion Canada was among a group of organizations that filed a Charter of Rights challenge against what's known as track 2 MAID. Article content 'It was crystal clear — the United Nations said they need to repeal track 2 medical assistance in dying,' she said. Article content Garnett Genuis, the Conservative employment critic, said he came away from the UN event worried about Canada's international reputation being harmed by what he called Ottawa's 'failures to uphold our obligations to protect the rights of people with living with disabilities.'