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Voluntary euthanasia

26 May 2015

Q. When a person has a disease that cannot be cured and is living in severe pain, do you think doctors should or should not be allowed by law to assist the patient to commit suicide if the patient requests it?

Total

Vote Labor

Vote Lib/Nat

Vote Greens

Vote other

Sep 2010

Nov 2013

Oct 2014

Should be allowed

72%

76%

68%

83%

72%

69%

68%

66%

Should not be allowed

12%

12%

15%

1%

16%

14%

19%

14%

Don’t know

16%

11%

17%

16%

12%

17%

13%

20%

72% of respondents think that that doctors should be allowed by law to assist a patient commit suicide – up 6% since this question was asked last year. 12% think it should not be allowed – down 2%. This represents the strongest support for voluntary euthanasia over the past 5 years.

83% of Green voters, 76% of Labor and 68% of Liberal/National voters agreed that doctors should be allowed by law to assist a patient to commit suicide.

73% of women, 71% of men and 78% of those aged 45-64 support voluntary euthanasia.

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