Honourable senators, I rise today to speak to Bill C-14. As you know, I have had serious reservations about the Liberal government's approach to the issue of assisted suicide since before this bill was introduced. When the joint parliamentary committee tabled its report, which advocated expanding assisted suicide to those under 18 and to the mentally ill, my Conservative MP colleagues and I fought hard to ensure that those recommendations would not be reflected in legislation. Honourable senators, we fought that fight because Canadians do not want assisted suicide extended to these most vulnerable people. The risk for error is simply too great when the stakes are as high as life and death.

We have all witnessed the groundswell of public opinion and involvement in the issue of assisted suicide. Thousands of Canadians have contacted my office over the last several months, as I'm sure they have yours, honourable colleagues, to express their opinions on this issue. It was this pressure from Canadians and the Conservative opposition that forced the Trudeau government to climb down from its original plan to whip Liberal votes on the assisted suicide legislation in the other place. I want to thank Canadians for the considerable pressure they brought on the government to narrow the reach of assisted suicide legislation to try and protect Canada's most vulnerable citizens.

At the time Bill C-14 was introduced, I was cautiously optimistic. If we could add some additional safeguards, the bill would have a chance of navigating that delicate balance between personal autonomy and protecting the vulnerable.

We agreed at our Senate Legal Committee to pre-study the bill in order to meet the tight time frame set out by the Supreme Court of Canada. We met for more than 20 hours, listened to testimony from 66 witnesses and made several thoughtful and informed recommendations for amendments, half of which were agreed to unanimously by our committee's Conservative, Liberal and independent members.

Then, the Trudeau government stopped listening. How many of those Senate Legal Committee recommendations did the government implement? Exactly none, honourable senators.

I found it especially disheartening that the government refused to implement our committee's recommendation — passed by a majority of senators on that committee — which would have required terminal illness and end of life to access assisted suicide. That is what Canadians want and it is what Canadians expect of assisted suicide legislation.

Even while outright rejecting our committee's recommendations, Minister of Justice Jody Wilson-Raybould continued to say that she would "consider all thoughtful amendments" from the Senate on Bill C-14. After hearing over 20 hours of testimony from 66 witnesses, I do not understand how our Legal Committee recommendations weren't considered "thoughtful" enough.

So once the House of Commons passed Bill C-14 to us, our Legal Committee heard from more witnesses, studied this issue further and passed it to the Senate Chamber for full deliberation.

Our debate on this bill has truly been outstanding, honourable senators. It has been reasoned and measured and extremely personal for many. The Senate as a whole passed three excellent amendments that I was proud to support: that of Senator Eaton, who proposed a mandatory palliative care consultation for patients seeking assisted suicide; from Senator Plett, one that would have removed beneficiaries from being able to administer or assist in the actual assisted suicide; and from Senator Marshall, which would require the government to make regulations regarding the use and disposal of information on assisted suicide.

The justice minister had promised to consider all thoughtful amendments that the Senate proposed, yet that didn't happen. When the justice minister introduced the C-14 motion back into the House of Commons, those thoughtful amendments I just listed had all been substantially curtailed.

The Trudeau government rejected the crucial part of Senator Plett's amendment, which would have prevented beneficiaries from assisting with an assisted death, an important safeguard against abuse of the vulnerable and a recommendation passed unanimously by our Senate Legal Committee. Instead, the government chose to pass only a portion of Senator Plett's amendment. It is highly disappointing that the government failed to implement the full measure.

The justice minister also diminished Senator Eaton's amendment. Instead of requiring a mandatory palliative care consultation for anyone requesting assisted suicide, the Liberal government altered it so that patients need only be "informed of the means that are available to relieve their suffering, including palliative care." Once again, the government walked back on a measure that passed in this chamber, rendering it mostly ineffective.

Senator Marshall's amendment received a similar treatment. Whereas the original amendment stated that the minister "must make regulations," the motion introduced in the House of Commons reads that the minister "must make regulations that he or she considers necessary." This addition, honourable senators, completely alters the original intent of Senator Marshall's amendment, which was to make the regulations mandatory.

To be honest, I am disappointed and frustrated with the Liberal government effectively rejecting additional meaningful safeguards in Bill C-14. I really wish the Liberal government had chosen substance over optics.

Canadians do not want to see their loved ones suffer, but they have also voiced loudly and clearly that they are not prepared to open the floodgates wide on assisted dying. Time and time again, Canadians have expressed a view that strict safeguards must be in place before establishing any assisted suicide regime.

Bill C-14 makes a start in that direction. It requires approval by two medical practitioners and imposes a waiting period, albeit too brief, between the time of request for assisted suicide and the actual act. I acknowledge that these safeguards would disappear if Bill C-14 failed to become law, and that is why I am pleased to see the Senate deal with this bill in such an expeditious way. We need a national framework to guide Canada on this issue and not a patchwork of provincial regulations, some of which have already opened the door to possibly extending assisted suicide to children.

Though it has flaws, Bill C-14 is a vast improvement over the original recommendations made by the joint parliamentary committee's report.

And yet, bearing all of this in mind, I am still compelled to vote against this motion today. In good conscience, I cannot stand here in this place and vote for assisted dying legislation that lacks what I submit are necessary safeguards to protect the vulnerable, specifically the mentally ill. This bill does not require psychiatric assessments for individuals struggling with mental illness, and it has an inadequate waiting period to address the unique realities of people in that situation.

Bill C-14 does not expressly disallow people with mental illness as a sole basis for access to assisted suicide. In fact, the bill fails to even require terminal illness and being at the end of life, two things Canadians expect.

On an issue of such great import to the social and moral fabric of Canada, I do believe it is only right that the Senate must ultimately defer to the will of the elected House of Commons. Therefore, I have chosen not to bring further motions or amendments on this, but I will simply vote against it.

There is much for each of us to do in making this decision today, honourable senators. We have heard and exchanged the most personal of stories, but ultimately, we cannot let our individual experiences determine what is best for all Canadians, especially vulnerable Canadians. There are no easy answers on the issue of assisted suicide, but I ask you to keep vulnerable Canadians in the forefront of your thoughts as you cast your vote on this issue. I know I will.