Lauren Nicklinson

Assisted dying campaigner

Lauren Nicklinson is the daughter of the late Tony Nicklinson, and became a patron of Humanists UK in recognition of her brave and tireless campaigning for the right to die of those who are terminally ill and incurably suffering.

Humanists UK first worked alongside Lauren, Tony, and her mother, Jane Nicklinson in Tony’s landmark right-to-die case in 2012–15. Tony, whose entire body was left paralysed (locked-in syndrome) after suffering a stroke, appealed to the High Court in 2012 for an assisted death on his own terms. Not long after his case was dismissed, Tony died of complications from pneumonia. Lauren supported her mother Jane as she continued with the legal fight for a change in the assisted dying laws, taking the case to the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court, and eventually the European Court of Human Rights. Their case was dismissed by the ECHR in 2015 after the court ruled it was for Parliament to decide.

Lauren has been and continues to be a stalwart crusader for a more humane legal approach across the UK to assisted dying which would allow individuals suffering from terminal or incurable illnesses a choice over the manner, timing, and the conditions in which they die. In 2021 she spoke on Sky News about a Private Members' Bill brought forward by Baroness Meacher that proposed that adults of sound mind in England and Wales should be allowed to request assistance to die if they have six or fewer months left to live. She argued that while important, the bill didn’t ‘go far enough'.

Lauren’s dedication for greater dignity and autonomy for people who suffer from debilitating conditions and demonstrations of unwavering humanity, compassion, and clarity continue to inspire public opinion and fellow campaigners on this issue.