Block MAID for infants
Petitioners ask the Government of Canada to block extending MAID to infants under one year and prevent infanticide. The government responds that MAID eligibility requires age 18+, so infants are ineligible under current law.
Why we would sign this petition
- It would legally prevent extending MAID to infants under one year, directly addressing the petitioners' concern about proposals to include newborns.
- It affirms protection for the most vulnerable by keeping age limits that require consent and capacity, avoiding irreversible outcomes for infants.
- It responds to public moral concern and preserves current safeguards that restrict MAID to adults, reducing risk of policy drift.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- Existing MAID law already requires recipients be at least 18, so a ban specifically targeting infants may be redundant.
- A blanket block could foreclose careful future policy or medical review of rare, complex neonatal cases where new evidence might warrant discussion.
- The petition's emotional framing may inflame public debate; more constructive options include clarifying the law or strengthening safeguards through formal review.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
Petition to the Government of Canada We, the undersigned citizens and residents of Canada, draw the attention of the House of Commons to the following: Whereas: Louis Roy of the Quebec College of Physicians recommended expanding euthanasia to "babies from birth to one year of age who come into the world with severe deformities and very serious syndromes"; This proposal for the legalized killing of infants is deeply disturbing to many Canadians; and Infanticide is always wrong. We, the undersigned citizens and residents of Canada, call on the Government of Canada to block any attempt to allow the killing of children.
Government response
Response by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency Signed by THE PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY PATRICIA LATTANZIO Canada’s medical assistance in dying (MAID) regime permits persons who meet all the eligibility criteria in section 241.2 of the Criminal Code to receive MAID. In order to be eligible, a person must be at least 18 years old, make a voluntary request for MAID and consent to receiving it, and, as such, eligibility for MAID cannot be extended to infants under the existing framework.