A DOCTOR has welcomed a man being allowed to appeal against a High Court decision stopping him being helped to “die with dignity”.

Noel Conway, 68, who suffers from motor neurone disease, will now be able to have his case heard before the Court of Appeal.

Retired GP Michael Irwin, from Hove, who has been given the nickname Dr Death due to his commitment to campaigning for assisted suicide, supported the decision and raised questions over current restrictions.

The 86-year-old said: “It is a very positive step that Noel Conway has been granted permission to take his case to the Court of Appeal.

“This decision confirms that our courts do have the authority to decide that the present law, restricting doctor-assisted suicide, is incompatible with Europe Human Rights legislation.”

National charity Humanists UK, which intervened in the case at the High Court to support Mr Conway, has welcomed the decision and intends to intervene again.

Mr Conway, from Shrewsbury, who is supported by campaign group Dignity In Dying, is challenging the illegality of assisted dying for those who are terminally ill and have six months or fewer to live.

In October, the High Court rejected his case and refused him permission to appeal against its decision, but that has now been overturned by the Court of Appeal.

Mr Conway said: “I am pleased that my case will now proceed to the Court of Appeal.

“I brought this case not only for myself but on behalf of all terminally ill people who believe they should have the right to die on their own terms.

“Our voices deserve to be heard.

“I have accepted that my illness will rob me of my life, but how it ends should be up to me.

“Why should I have to endure unbearable suffering and the possibility of a traumatic, drawn-out death when there is an alternative that has been proven to work elsewhere?

“To have the choice of an assisted death in my final months would allow me to enjoy the rest of my life in peace, without fear and worry hanging over me.”

Dr Irwin recently set up a specialist consultancy to provide support and advice to people who are considering going abroad to end their life.

It is thought that at least 400 people from the UK have travelled to Switzerland for doctor-assisted suicides.