ARE THERE any ethics left in the medical profession or in our elected government ministers? The British government has essentially legalised assisted suicide. Alison Saunders, director of public prosecutions, has rewritten her prosecution policy so doctors can now be involved in assisted suicide without fear of prosecution, provided they don’t have a professional relationship with those they ‘help’.

Lord Falconer and others who are trying to get assisted suicide legalised will find it much easier for them to do so without a backward glance with the minister for the prosecution services supporting them. I hope that MPs and the House of Lords reject Lord Falconer’s Assisted Suicide Bill as it will surely come back after the election in May.

Ministers must bear in mind the wonderful work of our hospices. A hospice is not just a building, it is a way of caring for people, however short the time people have left. There is no other country in the world, except Britain, where palliative care is a recognised medical speciality with a full four-year training programme.

Assisted dying offers only lethal drugs and an unspoken agreement with the dying person that his/her life is not worth living. Britain was ranked first in the world for quality end-of-life care. Let’s keep it that way.

Mr Norman Plaisted, Vivian Road, Newport