Canadian Cardinal asks lawmakers to stop euthanasia expansion for mental illness

The archbishop of Toronto published a statement April 20 calling on Canada’s prime minister and lawmakers to support Bill C-218, a measure that would prevent the euthanasia of those whose sole underlying condition is mental illness.

Without the legislation, euthanasia, referred to as Medical Assistance in Dying or (MAiD) in Canada, will be available for Canadians suffering exclusively from mental illness beginning in March 2027.

“I ask you to choose life and not death,” Metropolitan Archbishop of Toronto Cardinal Frank Leo wrote to Prime Minister Mark Carney and all federal Members of Parliament (MP) in the Archdiocese of Toronto. Cardinal Leo called on the political leaders “to help build a civilization that cares for those suffering and does not eliminate them, but instead surrounds them with dignity, compassion, and love.”

He expressed “great disappointment and anguish” at the pace of MAiD’s expansion since MAiD legislation was first passed in 2016 — describing the movement as “rapid and alarming” and contrary to the commitments and safeguards promised a decade ago.

“Euthanasia and assisted suicide are indeed contrary to the dignity of the human person,” he wrote.

The first year MAiD was legalized, 1,018 Canadians died by euthanasia. By 2024, that number had climbed to 16,499 in a year — a more than 16-fold increase in under a decade, now accounting for 1 in every 20 deaths in Canada. 

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