Majority of UK doctors oppose euthanasia

A change in the law to legalise euthanasia is supported by 34% of doctors (general public: 82%), with 35% backing physician-assisted suicide (general public: 62%). The questions mirror those asked in the British Social Attitudes survey in 2007, making this the first direct comparison between members of the public and doctors.

More than 3,700 doctors replied to the survey, which was commissioned by a group of UK charities in response to the House of Lords' 2005 select committee report on the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill.

Study author Professor Clive Seale from the Centre for Health Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, said: "This research shows stark differences between public opinion and that of doctors. Elsewhere in the world, opposition among doctors has been a major factor in preventing the legalisation of euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide."

Opposition to euthanasia and physician assisted suicide was higher among specialists in palliative care and care of the elderly. Fewer than one in 10 palliative care specialists believed euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide should be legalised, compared with one in three among GPs.

The study was commissioned by the National Council for Palliative Care, Age Concern, Help the Hospices, Macmillan Cancer Support, the MND Association, the MS Society and Sue Ryder Care.