Falloon AndrewANDREW FALLOON (National—Rangitata): Thank you Mr Speaker. I don't think there's any member of this House regardless of their position who hasn't given this issue their utmost thought. That has been reflected through the debate not only in this Parliament but also largely out in the public domain. I'd like to thank David Seymour in particular for his advocacy on the issue. I also want to take this opportunity to thank the many thousands of people who have emailed MPs—I think it was 7500 at the last count and I can assure you they have been read—and also the 200 or so people who have turned up to public meetings in Ashburton and Timaru and I'm sure throughout the country as well. Thank you to those of you here today regardless of your position and also I'm sure to many people watching the debate or following it at home.We are conscious in this House that not every person is able to have a voice in this Parliament. With the House's indulgence I would like to give voice to one of those people today. Her story is not unique and her story is not the reason that I'm voting for this bill. Her name is Roslyn and her sister Gina died after 12 years of suffering from a rare and debilitating illness. It robbed Gina of everything that she enjoyed. She was bedridden and lost the ability to speak. Gina could tolerate no light and very little sound. She took to wearing an eye mask taped to her face and earplugs to dull the sounds that we treat as normal but that she described as a screaming siren going off non-stop all day and night. She could swallow only thin liquids; even pureed food was too much to handle. The pressure all over her emaciated body meant that she rolled herself from side to side all day and night in a ceaseless attempt to escape her pain. But there was no escaping the painful pressure caused by muscle wasting leaving her bones protruding on all sides down her spine hips joints and limbs.In Gina's care facility she had access to expert palliative care dedicated medical professionals and loving family and friends. Yet her suffering continued to grow daily. Morphine was completely ineffective for her pain as were her other medications and attempts to palliate her agony. Gina was in irreversible decline but she knew that she only had unrelenting pain ahead of her. So eventually she found a way to end her suffering—alone and unsupported.I met with Roslyn earlier this year and I repeat her words now because Roslyn cannot. Like her sister Gina Roslyn has been diagnosed with the same rare illness. She cannot speak and like Gina now can only communicate through written word or touch screen. She knows her condition will continue to decline and she too will end up bedridden like Gina. The sad irony is that despite her illness Roslyn's present condition is not terminal and yet for others she is determined to fight for what Gina could not achieve: a change in the law.I agree that euthanasia should never be commonplace and that vulnerable people must be protected. We have excellent palliative care that works for most people and we can improve it even more. But it does not work in all cases. I cannot in good conscience force people like Roslyn to go through the same tortured existence that her sister Gina had suffered when another choice is available.