Christine Gauthier accuses Canadian official of making comments while enquiring about making her home accessible
A Canadian army veteran and former Paralympian said she was offered euthanasia after enquiring about installing a disabled lift in her home.
Christine Gauthier, who served 10 years in the Canadian armed forces and represented her country in the 2016 Paralympic Games, was told she had the “right to die” by a caseworker from Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC), a government agency.
The comment, said to have been made last year, followed the introduction of new laws by Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party in 2016 legalising euthanasia for terminally ill Canadians.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Ms Gauthier, who requires a wheelchair because of irreversible injuries from her time in the military, said after initially submitting her request for the disabled equipment in 2018, in 2022 a VAC employee “called me to make a point of where we’re at [with the lift]”.