Biography
Dr Simon Opher has engaged extensively on health and social care through 40 debate speeches, with particular emphasis on end-of-life care and assisted dying, drawing on his 34 years of clinical experience in palliative and end-of-life care delivery. His contributions have addressed interconnected pressures across the NHS including A&E capacity, GP workload and demand, mental health provision, and administrative burdens, alongside broader health system reform and public health prevention. He has also raised healthcare concerns in specific contexts, including provision in Gaza and domestic health policy reform including the abolition of NHS England.
Generated from their own Hansard record, below
“…In fact, the evidence from other jurisdictions is that these people do not go for assisted dying—it is actually a white, middle-class, able-bodied thing—so in a way we have the opposite problem to deal with.”
Record by topic
- Assisted dying8th of 390120.0
- Mental health19th of 884102.0
- Palliative & end of life care16th of 53760.0
- Medical ethics & regulation10th of 22145.0
- GP access6th of 24242.0
- Cancer28th of 62736.0
- Public health & prevention57th of 69121.0
- NHS waiting lists37th of 53521.0
- Respiratory (asthma/COPD)7th of 14218.0
- Heart disease & stroke23rd of 40015.0
- A&E & ambulance response20th of 25915.0
- Learning disability & autism254th of 90115.0
- Maternity & neonatal69th of 44112.0
- Dentistry access41st of 1949.0
- Dementia30th of 2519.0
- Children's health17th of 1589.0
- Diabetes21st of 1929.0
- Hospital discharge / bed-blocking19th of 1396.0
- Elderly care & frailty30th of 2406.0
- Cosmetic procedures & aesthetics4th of 243.0
- Women's health & gynaecology95th of 2043.0
- NHS & care workforce/staffing118th of 3043.0
What they’ve said
“No, I will carry on if that is okay. It is a great thing to offer end-of-life care and palliative care. In 2010, the UK system for palliative care was at the level of the best in the world, yet still people went to Dignitas. Still, 600 people who were suffering from terminal diagnosis killed themselves.”
Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · 2026-09-11 · Read on Hansard ↗
“…I have been involved in delivering palliative care and end-of-life care—they are actually quite different—for over 34 years and I continue to do so as a GP. Given the time, I will cut my speech short, but I want to say that this is really about choice.”
Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · 2026-09-11 · Read on Hansard ↗
“Does my hon. Friend acknowledge that, even with excellent palliative care, there are very similar rates of people demanding assisted dying? In fact, even in 2010, when we had probably the best palliative care in the world, people still went to Dignitas or took their own lives.”
Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · 2026-09-11 · Read on Hansard ↗
“…I will return to over-medicalisation. I would like to try to divert patients with mild to moderate mental health symptoms to social prescribing, such as access to nature, arts and culture and exercise—and indeed comedy.”
Health Bill · 2026-09-07 · Read on Hansard ↗
“…consulted over 50 million times every year—and those who go to Dr Google usually end up thinking that they have cancer or need an ambulance, so that is clearly driving demand. There are also doctor factors. If we carry on treating sore throats with antibiotics, people will carry on coming back.”
Health Bill · 2026-09-07 · Read on Hansard ↗
Contributions reproduced under the Open Parliament Licence.
Related media coverage
Recent UK press coverage of their topics — not necessarily quoting them directly.