Forget no one, listen to everyone. “This is the line of conduct set for approaching the debate on the end of life”, specifies the office of Agnès Firmin Le Bodo, Minister Delegate in charge of Territorial Organization and Health Professions. Everyone in the same boat? “With the exception of the most radical of all persuasions, against whom she will oppose a radical moderation. This is the guarantee of having the most serene debate possible on this intimate subject which can quickly become explosive. he immediately clarifies.
Is it to forget the bias of the former deputy of Seine-Maritime, who had supported without qualms, in April 2021, the bill of his colleague Olivier Falorni to legalize euthanasia? “I have an assumed personal position, but at no time should it guide the conduct of discussions. I know it and I feel quite capable of it. she affirmed in the columns of The cross the day after the launch of the debate announced by the Élysée on September 13.
Three end-of-life working groups
Since then, the Minister has multiplied initiatives and signs of openness. Her first trip, she booked it at the Jeanne-Garnier house, a Parisian establishment specializing in palliative care, whose development she regularly claims to want to accelerate in France. On September 26, the one who defines herself as “non-practicing Catholic” received the representatives of the bishops of France, including Mgr Pierre d’Ornellas, archbishop of Rennes and head of the bioethics group of the Conference of Bishops of France (CEF).
So many meetings which make it possible to counterbalance the publicity organized on social networks around her telephone interview with the artist Line Renaud, godmother of the Association for the right to die with dignity (ADMD).
But Agnès Firmin Le Bodo does not intend to stop there. Faithful to its ministerial roadmap, it now wishes to launch consultations with all the stakeholders. For this, three working groups will soon be set up to feed into the reflection on the end of life. The first will bring together a holder and a substitute from each parliamentary group in the National Assembly and the Senate. “We are still working with the group presidents to determine the final transpartisan list of around twenty elected officials who will have to illustrate the diversity of sensitivities within each group”, says the minister’s office.
The second working group will include representatives of healthcare personnel – from doctors to nursing auxiliaries – throughout the country. Finally, the third group will be made up of user associations. “It’s about listening to citizens who are committed, involved in these issues, especially caregivers, but not activists”, emphasizes the ministry.
The Citizens’ Convention will begin on December 9
It remains to be seen when these groups will be operational and how their work will be articulated with that of the Citizens’ Convention on the end of life. “We are moving forward step by step and with caution on this file. With regard to the calendar, the consultations should be able to begin at the beginning of November. On the way in which the crossing with the citizens’ convention will take place, it is still too early to specify, “ we answer the ministry.
In a “referral letter” sent on October 10 to the Economic, Social and Environmental Council (Cese), which will host this convention from December 9, Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne gave clear instructions: “These consultations will take place within a period allowing the convention and the Cese to fully integrate them into their thinking. »
Translation of someone close to the file: “From the moment the convention starts, the ministers will have to put themselves in a posture of listening more than expression. This will avoid extraneous noises and the impression that the debate is already settled before it begins. »