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 | May 2015 | |||
Should be allowed | 68% | 71% | 66% | 82% | 70% | 69% | 68% | 66% | 72% | ||
Should not be allowed | 13% | 13% | 15% | 9% | 15% | 14% | 19% | 14% | 12% | ||
Don’t know | 19% | 16% | 19% | 9% | 16% | 17% | 13% | 20% | 16% |
68% of respondents think that that doctors should be allowed by law to assist a patient commit suicide – down 4% since May last year but similar to results over the last 6 years. 13% think it should not be allowed.
82% of Green voters, 71% of Labor and 66% of Liberal/National voters agreed that doctors should be allowed by law to assist a patient to commit suicide.
68% of women, 67% of men and 76% of those aged 45-64 support voluntary euthanasia.