‘In every free democratic society there are limits placed on human freedom in order to protect the common good and vulnerable people. It is right that the law is not to be changed to accommodate the wishes of a small number of desperate and determined people at the expense of the rights of others.’ These were the comments of Dr Gordon Macdonald after a bill proposing to introduce assisted suicide was defeated on its first reading at Holyrood last Wednesday. He added, ‘Legal and medical experts consistently warned that the proposed Bill was deeply flawed and would be difficult to enforce in practice. We thank God that the Scottish Parliament rejected this dangerous legislation and voted in favour of protecting the lives of thousands of vulnerable people.’ See article 4 below.