Poll: Most Britons support euthanasia

LONDON, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Britons hold mostly favorable views on euthanasia and assisted suicide, an Angus Reid Public Opinion poll released Tuesday indicated.

The polling firm said that among a representative national sample of 2,004 British adults, 71 percent supported legalizing euthanasia in Britain, while 18 percent opposed the idea.

Overall, it said, 61 percent of Britons think people who help a person to commit suicide should not be prosecuted.

The poll also found that at least three-quarters believe legalizing euthanasia would establish clearer guidelines for doctors to deal with end-of-life decisions. Some 84 percent said it would provide people who are suffering an opportunity to ease their pain.

Pollsters, meanwhile, found that less than half -- 46 percent -- of Britons agree with the arguments that legalizing euthanasia would leave vulnerable people without sufficient legal protection. Only 30 percent agreed that legalization would send the message that the lives of the sick or disabled are less valuable.

The online poll was conducted Jan. 26-27 and carried a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points, pollsters said.