Lady Prue Leith has suggested that feeling like a burden is a “legitimate reason” for accessing death assistance.
The Great British Bake Off star, 82, is an outspoken supporter of the ‘right to die’ movement and hopes that assisted suicide for the terminally ill will be introduced in the UK.
Lady Prue loves the exact opposite of her sonTory MP Danny Kruger, who is? completely against assisted dying and suggested in a recent speech that people would choose it “because they feel they are a burden to their families.”
On Wednesday, the beloved presenter appeared on Piers Morgan Uncensored where she said that at her age she was “on the road to the big decision” and wanted to be able to make the choice to end her life when the time comes.
Assisted dying is legal in some countries, including certain parts of the United States.
Piers played “devil’s advocate” on the show, sharing stats from a 2020 report stating that 53% of people who used the Death With Dignity Act that year are “a burden” to their family or caregiver as the reason why they wanted to quit their lives.
To which Dame Prue replied that feeling like a burden is “a legitimate reason.”
“If you know you’re causing your family a lot of anxiety… and you’re worried about you, and you’re in a lot of pain or not enjoying your life, that’s a valid reason,” she suggested.
To clarify, Dame Prue continued: “I’m not saying… that people should want to commit suicide or have death assistance just because they’re a burden. But being a burden is one of the things that is so disturbing.”
She admitted the idea that a family member could pressure a sick loved one to end their life for inheritance or other reasons was a “serious concern,” but the risks are “fairly small.”
The presenter suggested there should be “guarantees” to ensure it is a person’s “real choice” and that they are “not forced in any way”, but said the fear was “a bit of a bogeyman.” .
Piers went on to compare Dame Prue and her son, MP Kruger’s conflicting views, insisting she wanted to make the choice when the time came, and joked that he hoped he wouldn’t get support from his “comrades in parliament.” ‘.
“I should be in charge of my own life,” she insisted. †[The idea that] somehow human life is so sacred, sacred to whom? It’s not sacred to me.’
She clarified that she and her son would only talk about dying assistance if she only had six months or less to live, and suggested, “I don’t think my son would make my last six months any more painful by refusing me to do that.” . †
“When it comes to my own life, it’s my life. Difficult. He’s going to lose me in six months anyway, so pull yourself together and show it a few months before.’
It’s far from the only thing Dame Prue and her conservative son disagree on, with Kruger coming under scrutiny for suggesting a woman should not have ‘absolute autonomy’ about her body.
The MP made the comments after the US destruction of Roe v Wade, which has led to abortion bans in some states.
Dame Prue – who had an unsafe abortion at age 15 – wrote in The Spectator after her son’s comments that she disagrees with Mr. Kruger but still loves and admires him.
Metro.co.uk has reached out to representatives for Dame Prue for comment.
Piers Morgan Uncensored airs weekdays at 8 p.m. on TalkTV.
LAKE : Prue Leith orders Tory MP son Danny Kruger to ‘men’ as she wants to take control of her own body
