Anger over ‘abhorrent’ assisted suicide poster campaign at Westminster tube station

London transport bosses have refused to apologise for plastering the walls of a London Underground station with posters calling for the legalisation of assisted suicide.

Disabled activists were horrified by the sight of poster after poster greeting passengers walking through a tunnel at Westminster tube station this week, in the lead-up to tomorrow’s vote by MPs on Labour MP Kim Leadbeater’s terminally ill adults (end of life) bill.

The posters were designed by the pro-assisted suicide campaigning organisation Dignity in Dying, with one of the designs showing a photograph of a woman with terminal cancer dancing joyfully in her kitchen.

The sight of so many Dignity in Dying posters on both walls of the tunnel led disabled activists to label it the “Westminster death tunnel”, and warn of the potential impact on passengers with mental distress.

Campaigners later pasted posters for the Samaritans helpline over every one of the posters, although they were later removed.

Paula Peters (pictured, left), a disabled activist who campaigns against the legalisation of assisted suicide, called for the “immediate” removal of the posters.

She said: “It is absolutely appalling of Dignity in Dying to use Westminster and Oxford Circus stations to advertise for their campaign with their insensitive ads.

“Are they aware that in the year up to March 2024 (PDF), 68 people in mental distress attempted to take their own lives on London Underground, and 24 succeeded?

“That London Underground train drivers, platform staff and ticket line staff are traumatised by each incident of the act of suicide and suicide attempt on the network?

“This is totally insensitive of Dignity in Dying to use the London Underground in this way; they have scant regard for the passengers who have taken their own lives and the workers who have been traumatised.

“This is also insensitive of Transport for London (TfL) and the mayor of London.”

She said the posters appeared to breach TfL advertising standards.

Accessible transport campaigner Tony Jennings said he was “appalled” by the “abhorrent, coercive poster campaign” and said the posters would be “triggering” for those with mental distress and “need removing urgently”.

He called for TfL to “remove the tasteless posters” and for the RMT union to support that call.

Disabled activist Natalya Dell said that for those who experience mental distress, the posters “could be really triggering and upsetting”.

She said: “I think with an issue where there are strong feelings and a lot of painful memories [and] experiences on both sides, that is not something that needs to be on TfL’s advertising.

“It is too nuanced and painful an issue for posters.”

Dignity in Dying refused to explain why it placed so many of its posters in a location so strongly associated with suicides, whether it stood by that decision, and whether it would apologise and remove them.

But a spokesperson said in a statement: “Our Let Us Choose campaign features real people who want a change in the law on assisted dying, either because they are terminally ill and want the choice, or because their loved one wanted the choice but was denied it.

“The campaign uses positive imagery of these people living life on their own terms, alongside messages about why they are campaigning for greater choice.

“It is fully compliant with the Committee of Advertising Practice code.

“For some of our posters to be vandalised in this way is disappointing, and understandably upsetting for those pictured.

“We are in contact with them and we are making sure that they are being supported.”

TfL claimed that the DiD advertising campaign complied with its advertising policy (PDF) and the Committee of Advertising Practice code.

Its policy states that an advertisement will be considered “unacceptable” if it “is likely to cause widespread or serious offence to reasonable members of the public” or is “unacceptable for some other substantial reason”.

TfL refused to say if it thought that so many posters calling for assisted suicide to be legalised at Westminster station was appropriate, whether it was concerned about the impact on people in mental distress in a London Underground station, or who at TfL approved the campaign.

But a TfL spokesperson said in a statement: “We reviewed this advertising campaign against both our advertising policy and the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) code, and it was found to be compliant.”

RMT had not commented by noon today (Thursday).

The office of the mayor for London, Sadiq Khan, refused to say if he thought that so many posters calling for assisted suicide to be legalised at one Underground station was appropriate, and whether he was concerned about the impact on people in mental distress in an Underground station.

But a spokesperson for the mayor said in a statement: “The mayor has no involvement in approving or deciding which ads run on the TfL network, and TfL’s policy reflects legal requirements.”

The following organisations are among those that could be able to offer support if you have been affected by the issues raised in this article: Samaritans, Papyrus, Mind, SOS Silence of Suicide and Rethink

A note from the editor:

Please consider making a voluntary financial contribution to support the work of DNS and allow it to continue producing independent, carefully-researched news stories that focus on the lives and rights of disabled people and their user-led organisations.

Please do not contribute if you cannot afford to do so, and please note that DNS is not a charity. It is run and owned by disabled journalist John Pring and has been from its launch in April 2009.

Thank you for anything you can do to support the work of DNS…