Proponents of assisted suicide believe the Government is ducking the issue and will not legislate for it in the current Dáil.

In 2024, just a few months before the last General Election, a Special Oireachtas Joint Committee called for the Government to bring forward legislation for TDs to scrutinise.

Two years on, former People Before Profit TD Gino Kenny, who was an advocate of assisted suicide but lost his seat in the last election, said he does not believe the Government has any interest in the topic.

“I just don’t see this Government legislating for assisted dying,” he told Newstalk Breakfast.

His comments follow confirmation from Justice minister Jim O’Callaghan that “no decision” has been taken on the matter. He has described such a bill as “very complex”, adding that it would require careful consideration of medical, ethical, and cultural issues.

Sinn Féin TD David Cullinane, who was a member of the committee that backed change, hit out at the lack of action, claiming the Government are “avoiding the issue”.