Blur star from Essex Dave Rowntree criticises 'psychopathic' assisted dying laws

Dave Rowntree during an interview at the premiere of blur: To The End
-Credit: (Image: Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for Altitude)


Blur star Dave Rowntree has criticised "psychopathic" assisted dying laws ahead of a new bill being proposed to the change the law in England and Wales. The music icon, 60, revealed for the first time that his terminally ill wife felt forced to end her life alone in Switzerland earlier this year.

Mr Rowntree voiced frustration over the current legal situation that presents people with the choice of wanting to end their lives, but being unable to legally request assistance from others. It comes just weeks before a new bill proposing changes to the law is due to be published.

The drummer, from Colchester, married Paola Marra in 1994 but the pair divorced in the early 2000s. Despite splitting, Rowntree was one of the people to support his ex-wife after she was diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer and later made the decision to end her own life in Zurich, Switzerland.

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Six months later Rowntree has described the current laws as 'psychopathic' and says they show "absolutely no empathy for the sufferer". The topic of assisted dying is one that divides opinion in the UK.

Celebrities like Dame Esther Rantzen and campaigners want the government to follow in the footsteps of the likes of New Zealand, Switzerland and Australia. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and Health Secretary Wes Streeting have both urged caution and shown opposition to the proposals.

In an emotional interview with the Guardian, Rowntree said of the current legality surrounding assisted dying: "It is the system washing its hands of difficult problems in a way that I can’t stomach. That’s the whole point of the state. The state can declare war … And if the state isn’t going to take these kind of difficult decisions, what the f**k is the point in having the state?

"This is psychopathic, where we are now, because the whole point of this [should be] to try to make things easier for the real victim in this – the terminally ill person."

The introduction of Labour MP Kim Leadbeater's bill in Parliament has been met with approval from assisted dying campaigners, who see it as a chance to offer dying individuals control over their final moments. Conversely, opponents of assisted dying warn that the bill could lead to a dangerous precedent, potentially coercing individuals into ending their lives to avoid burdening their families.