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The Bishops' Conference of Scotland

17th March 2026


17 March 2026

Scotland Rejects Assisted Dying and Affirms Human Dignity

MSPs can be confident that they have taken the correct and responsible course of action. Their vote serves to protect some of Scotland’s most vulnerable individuals from the risk of being pressured into a premature death.
Every human life possesses inherent value. Genuine compassion is not expressed through ending a life, but through accompanying those who suffer and ensuring they receive the medical, emotional, and spiritual support that recognises their dignity. No life is without worth.
As a society, our responsibility is not to address suffering by eliminating the sufferer, but to surround each person with care, respect, and dignity until their natural end. Today’s decision moves Scotland further in that direction, and MSPs should be commended for this.
However, we must continue to make progress. Our next priority must be to strengthen palliative care by ensuring that it is properly funded and accessible to all who require it.
I would like to express my gratitude to all MSPs for their serious engagement with this issue and for the thoughtful and considered attention they have given to the bill. I am especially grateful to those who upheld the principle of human dignity and advocated on behalf of the vulnerable. Your principled commitment has not gone unnoticed.
Bishop John Keenan
President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland


Contact:

Media Office

Bishops’ Conference of Scotland
64 Aitken Street, ML6 6LT
Tel: 01236 764061
Email: [email protected]

The Roman Catholic Bishops in Scotland work together to undertake nationwide initiatives through their Commissions and Agencies.

The members of the Bishops' Conference are the Bishops of the eight Scottish Dioceses. Where appropriate the Bishops Emeriti (retired) provide a much welcomed contribution to the work of the conference. The Bishops' Conference of Scotland is a permanently constituted assembly which meets regularly throughout the year to address relevant business matters.

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February 2025



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Register at bit.ly/Stations25
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Join Catholics from across Scotland online each Monday in Lent for Stations of the Cross. Begins at 7:45pm on Monday 10 March and includes a reflection from Bishop Hugh Gilbert of Aberdeen Diocese.

Register at bit.ly/Stations25

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Pope Francis had a restful tenth night in the hospital, according to a statement published on Monday morning by the Holy See Press Office.

"The night went well; the Pope slept and is resting," read the statement.

The Pope is receiving treatment for double pneumonia at Rome's Gemelli Hospital.

On Sunday evening, the Holy See Press Office said his condition remains critical, though he has not experienced any respiratory crises since Saturday morning.

Pope Francis had received blood transfusions to bring up his hemoglobin levels.

"The thrombocytopenia remains stable; however, some blood tests show early, mild renal insufficiency, which is currently under control," said the Sunday press statement, adding that "high-flow oxygen therapy continues through nasal cannulas."

Earlier on Sunday, the Pope attended Mass in his apartment in Gemelli Hospital with the doctors and nurses who are overseeing his treatment.
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