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Speaker 1: This is jem nation with Jonesy.

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Speaker 2: And not only was it a federal election, but New

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Speaker 2: South Wales Parliament finally passed the Voluntary assisted Dying Bill.

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Speaker 2: We are the last state to do so. Someone who's

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Speaker 2: been a huge advocate behind the bill is our good

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Speaker 2: mate Andrew Denton. Without him, this may never have happened.

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Speaker 2: It was an extraordinary tour de force. Andrew Denton.

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Speaker 1: Hello, good morning a man, Good morning Jones Andy Pandy.

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Speaker 3: I texted you when you wrote that article last year

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Speaker 3: in the Telegraph, and I never had anyone articulated as

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Speaker 3: well as you did in your opinion piece. And the

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Speaker 3: thing about assisted dying, I think a lot of people

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Speaker 3: would go it's too hard to talk about. But in

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Speaker 3: the case of what happened with your dad, and everyone's

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Speaker 3: parent passing is a different journey. But what happened with

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Speaker 3: your dad, it would have certainly benefited him and you

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Speaker 3: and your family.

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Speaker 1: Oh absolutely. And you know, just in this last week,

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Speaker 1: I mean this has been the fact this law has happened.

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Speaker 1: Has been one of the great community movements. And in

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Speaker 1: the Parliament of New South Wales last week was a

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Speaker 1: woman called Ghibonno Sullivan who's got a very encounter. She

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Speaker 1: probably only even live to see the law can't do

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Speaker 1: effect and help her, but she knows. She spoke with

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Speaker 1: so many and she said, I hope I will have

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Speaker 1: the choice. It's not the people. Nobody wants to die.

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Speaker 1: Funny that newsclash. It's not that people want to die,

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Speaker 1: but they don't want to suffer in a way that's

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Speaker 1: out of their control. And that's a reasonable thing.

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Speaker 2: And I think people some people may have the impression

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Speaker 2: that this will be too easy for some and you

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Speaker 2: can and families may rut the system if they want

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Speaker 2: their mum's money or whatever. But the laws are very strict,

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Speaker 2: aren't they.

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Speaker 1: They are very strict. And I spent many months. They've

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Speaker 1: been in existence in Victoria for a couple of years.

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Speaker 1: I've spent many months talking to families and doctors and

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Speaker 1: the people that run the system, and in some ways

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Speaker 1: they're almost too strict. It's very, very difficult to get

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Speaker 1: through the process, and it's very difficult, just emotionally and

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Speaker 1: intellectually to get through the posts. It's one thing to

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Speaker 1: know that you're dying. It's another thing to go through

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Speaker 1: all those medical assessments and all the checks and balances

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Speaker 1: and then be given a medication and then decide this

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Speaker 1: is that I'm going to say goodbye to everything and everyone.

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Speaker 1: It's extremely hard to do and that's why not a

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Speaker 1: large number of people do it. And interestingly, in Victoria,

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Speaker 1: a third of the people have got that medication legally

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Speaker 1: entitled to have didn't use it.

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Speaker 2: In the end, because you do have to. It's a

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Speaker 2: person with a terminal illness who will pass away within

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Speaker 2: six months, twelve months, if it's someone with a neurodegenerative

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Speaker 2: condition who's unbearable suffering, the person must have found must

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Speaker 2: be found to have the capacity to make this decision

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Speaker 2: voluntarily without duress. And it has to be assessed by

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Speaker 2: two medical practitioners. So they're pretty tight boundaries, aren't they.

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Speaker 1: Yeah. And when they say assess competency or you know,

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Speaker 1: explain that this is their decision. They don't have to

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Speaker 1: do that once. They have to do that many times,

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Speaker 1: including right up to the point the pharmacists come and

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Speaker 1: deliver you that medical patient. And I spoke to the

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Speaker 1: guy from the Pharma service service in Victoria. That's bus

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Speaker 1: that most of these people and there have been occasions

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Speaker 1: that even at that last minute, they haven't given a

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Speaker 1: medication because the person was none of a competent. So

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Speaker 1: it's not easy and it's the you know, the terrible

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Speaker 1: truth is before this law existed, and even now doctors

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Speaker 1: illegally assist people to die, but without any of those

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Speaker 1: hafeguards because they can't stand to see patients suffering. And

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Speaker 1: there's you know, people beg for help and some doctors

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Speaker 1: give it.

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Speaker 2: Why has it taken New South Wales so long? I

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Speaker 2: know the Premier Dominic Perete, there was a conscience vote.

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Speaker 2: He voted against it, as did the leader of the opposition.

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Speaker 2: Why is this so hard to get across the line?

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Speaker 1: Look, I think probably got links the Premier and the

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Speaker 1: leader of the opposition on this issue as their faith.

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Speaker 1: They're both strongly Catholic. The Catholic Church in this state

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Speaker 1: has a very powerful position and they are the chief

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Speaker 1: opponents of this the leadership, I should add, most of

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Speaker 1: their congregations support it, but not the leadership. Look, it's

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Speaker 1: probably many complex reasons, but that that will be the

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Speaker 1: main one. But look it's happened now we have finally

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Speaker 1: joined the rest of Australia and that's good, but it

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Speaker 1: will take another eighty months before the law comes into effect.

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Speaker 2: Well, you've done incredible saying you've alleviated so much of

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Speaker 2: future suffering and as you say, even just knowing that

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Speaker 2: the option is there, whether people choose to take it

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Speaker 2: or not, will bring enormous comfort.

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Speaker 1: Oh, thanks Manny, Thanks jon Jen. Look that thanks on

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Speaker 1: behalf of just the most extraordinary group of people who

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Speaker 1: have been privileged towards alongside it. And some people have

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Speaker 1: been working on this for twenty thirty years.

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Speaker 2: Amazing and look at you.

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Speaker 3: So what's next. You're going to standardize the train gauges

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Speaker 3: for all of Australia. Can you do that? Yeah?

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Speaker 1: Well, you know that's always been my deepest passion. I'm

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Speaker 1: personally going to get out some welding gear and do it.

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Speaker 2: I knew you could, Andrew.

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Speaker 3: I knew if anyone can, Well it's you.

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Speaker 1: I look great in the man.

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Speaker 2: Thank you, Andrew.

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Speaker 3: Andrew didn't thank you so much, mate,