More than 100 Britons have travelled to Switzerland to make use of laws that allow assisted suicide, a practice prohibited in Britain.

The figure, released by Dignitas, the centre for assisted dying in Zurich, was disclosed two weeks ago ahead of a High Court test challenge to the laws that ban aiding and abetting suicide.

Dignitas was founded in 1998 by Ludwig Minelli, a Swiss lawyer who runs it as a nonprofit organisation. It takes advantage of Switzerland’s liberal laws on assisted suicide, which suggest that a person can be prosecuted only if they are acting out of self-interest.

According to Dignitas the number of Britons among its assisted suicides reached 100 last month. There is, however, no independent verification of its figures.

Final journey

— 3 areas outside Switzerland permit some form of assisted suicide: Belgium, the Netherlands and the state of Oregon in the United States

— 650 Britons are currently members of Dignitas

— 870 people have been helped to end their lives by the clinic

— 100 of them were from Britain

— 70% of those who request information about assisted suicide from Dignitas never contact it again

— 1941 when Switzerland made assisted suicide legal

Sources: Dignitas; Euthanasia Research and Guidance Organisation

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