A fit and healthy British mother too heartbroken to live on after the death of her young son has ended her own life in Switzerland today at the age of just 56.
Wendy Duffy paid her £10,000 life savings to die at the controversial Pegasos 'suicide clinic' in Basel on Friday, in a case that has sharply divided opinion in the UK.
Her passing, called a 'sane suicide' by Pegasos, came on the day the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is expected to fail because the House of Lords will run out of time to debate all the legislation.
Ruedi Habegger, Pegasos founder, said on Friday: ‘I can confirm that Wendy Duffy, at her own request, was assisted to die on April 24 and that the procedure was completed without incident and in full compliance with her wishes.
'I can also confirm that neither we nor any of the professional staff assessing her mental capacity had any doubt as to her intention, understanding and independence of both thought and action. In historical terms at English law, hers was a case of "sane suicide".'
Ms Duffy, a former care worker from the West Midlands, was in good health and considered sound of mind before she died.
But she lost her only child, Marcus, 23, in shocking circumstances four years ago. Her 'beautiful boy' had choked on a tomato that had become lodged in his windpipe while eating a sandwich, starving his brain of oxygen.
Wendy chose to die wearing one of his T-shirts because, she said, 'it still smells of him'.
'I'm going to go out to Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars singing Die With A Smile,' she added, smiling as she spoke exclusively to the Daily Mail this week.
British former care worker Wendy Duffy, 56, was physically healthy and of sound mind – but took her own life at a controversial 'suicide clinic' in Switzerland today
Her only child, Marcus, 23, died in shocking circumstances four years ago. He had choked on a tomato that had become lodged in his windpipe while eating a sandwich
The mother-of-one insisted that the decision to take her own life had been a 'happy' one because her 'spirit can be free'.
'It will be hard for everyone. But I want to die. I'll have a smile on my face when I do, so please be happy for me. My life; my choice,' Wendy said.
'I wish this was available in the UK, then I wouldn't have to go to Switzerland at all.'
Pegasos insists that the application process to die in their clinic is rigorous.
A panel of experts, including psychiatrists, passed her application after months of assessment and having had access to her full medical records.
Wendy boarded a plane to Switzerland with a one-way ticket and passed away this morning.
She had insisted her 'beautiful boy' Marcus would have understood her decision.
Wendy revealed her plans to die because she says she wants to draw attention to the 'unfairness' of the current system on her family.
'I could step off a motorway bridge or a tower block but that would leave anyone finding me dealing with that for the rest of their lives,' she said.
Marcus's death, together with the fact that medically trained Wendy tried to perform CPR on him herself, has haunted her ever since.
When asked what he would think of her decision to die in this way, Wendy said poignantly: 'I think he'd probably say "Get that dog, Mum, buck up your ideas", but ultimately he would understand.'
Wendy says she has already tried to take her own life, and failed. It left her on a ventilator but she recovered.
Her four sisters and two brothers knew of her decision to go to Switzerland.
But she did not inform her family of the timescale for their own protection – if anyone travelled with her, or assisted her suicide in any way, they would risk police investigation, if not prosecution, in the UK.
Under Swiss law it is forbidden to profit from assisted death, and Pegasos is a non-profit organisation.
Clients cover the cost of the medication, doctors' fees – capped so they cannot earn more than they would in a hospital – and funeral expenses. A portion of the funds also goes to the Swiss state.
Growing concern over taxpayers forking out for 'death tourism' has led to an agreement between the clinics and the authorities, so that the police and coroner charges – routine in any death – are met by the clinics.
Pegasos founder Ruedi Habegger told the Daily Mail: 'There is a red line that we cannot cross, otherwise it is not assisted suicide; you could actually call it murder.'
Wendy was so devastated by the loss of her only son Marcus that she decided to go through the application process to be considered for assisted dying in Switzerland
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Wendy is not the first British person to travel to the Pegasos clinic, but no one has spoken so publicly before.
Last year, a Welsh woman called Anne ended her life in secret at the Pegasos clinic after telling her family she was going away for a holiday.
Those who oppose any change to assisted dying law in the UK have long argued that if terminally ill people are given the 'right' to die under any circumstances, then it won't be long before those who are not nearing the end of life will demand the same right.
Alistair Thompson, Care Not Killing's spokesman, told the Daily Mail: 'This is a tragic case that highlights the real dangers of legalising assisted suicide and euthanasia.
'In recent years, we have seen people with diabetes, eating disorders and even those losing their looks to have applied to have their life ended under assisted dying legislation.
'This is why we argue there is no safe system anywhere in the world and why the House of Lords looks set to reject the assisted dying bill this week in Parliament.
'What we should be doing is concentrating on good palliative care rather than condoning the deaths of people who are clearly suffering in different ways.
'We've seen cases where people are heartbroken in the past. In Canada we've seen a case where a man was applying for an assisted death because he was made homeless, there are many similar tragic cases.
'That is the problem. Once you legalise assisted killing, it is only a matter of who is eligible, when they are eligible, and you end up with tragic and heartbreaking cases like this.'
Labour MP Rachel Maskell, who voted against assisted dying, said: 'Complex grief needs to be far better understood and supported.
'Nothing could be more tragic than losing your own child in unexpected circumstances, but Wendy's story highlights why far more needs to be invested into trauma management; the answer is not ending your own life.
'Investment in trauma-informed approaches to grief is crucial, while for those with enduring mental health challenges, services must rapidly improve.
'However, I believe we have a further duty – the Pegasos clinic in Switzerland should cause us alarm and we, as a Parliament, must explore ways of protecting people from using their 'services' if we are to protect people at their most vulnerable state.'
Protests were held outside Parliament this week by assisted dying supporters, with Dame Esther Rantzen's daughter saying she was 'furious' with the House of Lords, after accusing it of blocking the vote by 'democratic vandalism'.
Wendy applied to the Pegasos clinic in Switzerland. Pegasos insists that the application process to die in their clinic is rigorous
Rebecca Wilcox said: 'This delay, this lack of a vote, this lack of choice has a real human cost.
'It's really a sea of warmth and pink and smiling and loveliness here today, but I can't help feeling unbelievably furious that we are here again when we should be celebrating a vote.'
Dame Esther, 85, has been a leading voice of support for assisted dying since her own diagnosis with terminal lung cancer in 2023, but was not able to attend the protest herself as she is in palliative care.
Kim Leadbeater, the MP who first proposed the legislation to Parliament in October 2024 as a Private Members' Bill, told protesters that it was 'wrong, democratically and morally, that the House of Lords have talked the Bill out and allowed it to fall'.
Those opposed to assisted dying have been accused of using 'procedural tactics' to block the Bill after more than 1,000 amendments were tabled in the upper chamber.
The Bill has twice been passed through the Commons, although it was with a narrower majority the second time round.
For the existing Bill to become law, it needed to clear further revising stages in the Lords by Friday for both Houses to agree on its final wording to be written into the statute book.
Broadcaster Prue Leith, who also attended the protest, said she was 'indignant' and said what the House of Lords had 'done' was 'criminal'.
Supporters of the Bill have claimed there are 'loads' of backbench MPs who are willing to revive the legislation after the next parliamentary session begins on May 13.
A study last year revealed that three quarters of Britons supported assisted dying, with more than half saying they would themselves consider travelling to Switzerland for an assisted death if they were terminally ill.
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