The Liberal Democrats were today accused of dropping a controversial policy on euthanasia to avoid upsetting the religious right.

Chris Davies, Lib Dem MEP for north-west England, organised a fringe meeting with Ludwig Minelli, the founder of Dignitas, the Swiss charity, to argue for a change in the law which currently prevents terminally ill patients from being helped to die.

Dignitas has helped a number of terminally ill Britons take their own lives.

The Lib Dems backed assisted dying as official policy in 2004, but the party has yet to promote the controversial issue in or out of parliament.

Polls repeatedly show widespread public support for the right of terminally ill patients to be helped to die, though the issue is seen as a matter of conscience which divides parliament and raises the ire of religious groups.

Lord Joffe, the crossbench peer, attempted for the third time to push an assisted dying bill through parliament earlier this year, but the bill failed to pass from the Lords to the Commons due to a procedural technicality following strong lobbying from religious organisations.

Asked if he was angry that the party frontbench had dropped the policy by stealth, Mr Davies said that the Lib Dems should "take the lead" on such a fundamental "human rights" issue.

"Here is an issue which is about human rights which is enormously emotional and arouses great sensitivities," he said.

"There is 80% public support as long as there are sufficient safeguards and yet politicians are terribly frightened of raising it forward for fear of a public backlash they will get from the religious lobby."

Mr Davies welcomed the fact that, earlier today, his party's home affairs spokesman, Nick Clegg, had met both Mr Minelli and Sophie Pandit, the daughter of Anne Turner, who travelled to Switzerland earlier this year to take her own life after developing a degenerative neurological disease.

Mr Davies said that he would now "expect" to discuss the matter further with Mr Clegg to ensure the party pursued the issue.

"Of course I believe the party will invoke the conscience clause at every opportunity but, nonetheless, it should be taking the lead and setting the pace of debate on the matter in this country," Mr Davies said.

The Suicide Act 1961 makes it a criminal offence to assist someone to take their own life.

Mr Minelli told the fringe meeting that it was time to change UK laws to reflect the public's will.

The antiquated law clashed with article eight of the European convention on human rights, he said.

"My question for politicians in Britain today is: 'Why do you force your citizens, people in the most terrible circumstances who are determined to end their life in a way of their own choosing, to leave their country and travel to Switzerland to exercise their free will?' Where is the humanity in this process?"

Dr Minelli told the meeting that a change in the law would reduce suicides and ensure that those who were determined to end their lives did so with dignity.

"If we look to our members who have got the green light, which means that the Swiss physician has said he's ready to write the prescription for them, 70% never call again after they have heard that.

"They are just looking for an option to make a decision themselves."

The majority of suicide attempts fail, sometimes with dire consequences, Mr Minelli explained.

At Dignitas, patients are given a lethal dose of barbiturates which puts them into a deep coma and leads to a "natural death".

Since the clinic opened in 1998, 619 people have chosen to die, including 54 Britons.

One further British citizen is scheduled to attend the clinic next week.

Mr Minelli also repeated his controversial belief that the right to die should be extended to those who suffered a condition such as severe depression over a number of years, as well as terminally ill patients.

Mr Minelli said that a case was due to be heard at Switzerland's supreme court on October 27 of a person suffering from bipolar disorder who wants to kill himself through assisted suicide.

A ruling in favour of the patient would have implications across Europe, Mr Minelli said.

He said it was logical that all suicide should be assisted "because this is the only way to give people the chance to speak to somebody prior to suicide".

Such a move would help cut the suicide rate to around 20% to 25% of its current level, he claimed.

"You could avoid the huge majority and reduce costs to the health services," he said

Mr Davies's call for the Lib Dems to press the issue in parliament is unlikely to materialise.

Speaking after today's fringe debate, the party's home affairs spokesman, Nick Clegg, said that Mr Davies's position on assisted suicide went beyond the demands of the motion passed by delegates two years ago.

The motion supported measures based on the Dutch model, which provided more safeguards for patients, he said, while Mr Davies was promoting the more controversial Swiss model.

"The model that Chris is supporting is in effect going a lot further... I do not sense an appetite for that in the party," Mr Clegg said.

Mr Clegg added that the motion agreed by the party accepted that MPs should follow their conscience over such a sensitive issue.

"It is a rather grey area. We had a position agreed by members in 2004 and yet every MP is completely free to vote with their conscience.

"I do not think we willl see our party take a collective view on this."