On October 10, Philippe Couillard, whose government passed Quebec's euthanasia law in 2014, told CBC's The House:

"I'm not sure that I would have again voted for that law with the extension that we have seen in the recent years."

When even the man who got the Canada's first euthanasia law passed starts to have doubts, it is worth taking a hard look at where things stand.

Where things stand

In 2024-2025, 6,268 people were euthanized in Quebec. That is 7.9% of all deaths, the highest rate in the world. Across Canada as a whole, the rate is 5.1%.

That same year, Quebec's Commission on End-of-Life Care found 19 euthanasia deaths that broke the law. In 10 of those cases, the person did not even have a serious and incurable illness. No known penalty followed. What's more, in general, the Commission never even sees the medical records; it relies solely on the form filled out by the person who committed the euthanasia, and only an irregularity in the form triggers an investigation into these cases.

Quebec leads, Canada follows

The same pattern has repeated itself for twelve years:

• June 2014. Quebec passes its law, before the Supreme Court's Carter ruling and two years before the federal law of 2016.
• September 2019. The Truchon ruling by the Superior Court of Quebec declared the criteria of “reasonably foreseeable natural death” and “end of life” in the euthanasia law unconstitutional. In March 2021, the Canadian Parliament established “track 2,” which does not require these criteria.
• June 2023. Quebec's Bill 11 forces palliative care hospices to offer euthanasia. It also opens the door to advance requests.
• October 2024. Quebec allows advance requests without waiting for the Criminal Code to permit them, then presses Ottawa to follow.
• October 7, 2026. Ottawa follows. Justice Minister Sean Fraser announces a bill that will decriminalize advance requests in provinces that allow them.

Ottawa has dropped, thankfully, its plan to open euthanasia to people whose only condition is a mental illness. But on advance requests, the Quebec model is becoming the federal standard. A person will be able to ask today to be euthanized later, when he or she can no longer say yes or no.

What we have done

In May, in Ottawa, I denounced Quebec's world record before the press. This summer, we showed you what the Commission never sees: the medical file. Today, we are taking the next step.

If Quebec leads, Quebec is where we must apply the brakes

Every expansion starts in Quebec City, then reaches Ottawa, then the other provinces. If we slow the movement where it is born, it will lose momentum across the rest of Canada.

That is why we are launching the petition "Who Protects the Vulnerable?" It asks the Government of Quebec for:

• a moratorium on euthanasia until palliative care is available everywhere;
• a guarantee that palliative care hospices will never again be forced to give death;
• an independent review of oversight, and access to medical files for the Commission;
• fast, fully funded palliative care in every region.

Why now

Yesterday, Quebec's new cabinet was sworn in. The new ministers are inheriting their files, and nothing is set in stone yet. In a few months, priorities will be fixed and it will be much harder to be heard.

We have to strike while the iron is hot. We will deliver the signatures to the ministers concerned.

Don't live in Quebec? Sign anyway. What is decided there always ends up reaching you.

For Life,

Georges Buscemi
President, Quebec Life Coalition

P.S. On the petition page, you can print an information sheet and a signature sheet for your parish, your church or your family. Paper signatures are added to the total.

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40 Days for Life

The 40 Days for Life consists of 40 days of vigil, 12 hours a day, on the sidewalk, usually in the vicinity of an abortion clinic, to speak out in favor of the unborn to passersby and to offer help to women considering abortion. The 40 days begin on September 23th and end on November 1st; they take place in Sherbrooke.

For more information, contact Brian Jenkins at (438) 930-8643 or email [email protected]

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