Dining across the divide: ‘I’m angry about elderly, supposedly celibate priests giving women advice on reproductive health’
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They may not have seen eye to eye on abortion and assisted dying, but could American politics unite them?. Occupation Former policy manager. Currently “economically inactive/domestic goddess”. Voting record Labour in UK elections; for the Scottish parliament, first vote Green, second vote SNP. Describes herself as a leftie.
![[Sam Wollaston]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2019/12/05/Sam_Wollaston.png?width=75&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Amuse bouche In February, Allison won £500 for a 247-word story in a flash-fiction competition. More than £2 a word: “quite a good return”. Occupation Computer science researcher within academia. Voting record Michael, from Malta, came to the UK in 2017. In Malta he usually voted for the Nationalist party. In Scotland he votes SNP.
![[Headshot of Dining across the divider Allison]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/57dcf3fb6a40bdae7ff9390b0ae03cd8fe2d5132/1331_1041_1608_1608/master/1608.jpg?width=120&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Amuse bouche Michael once went straight from the beach to a formal ceremony in his wife’s town in Italy. He sat next to the mayor wearing wet swimming trunks. Allison I was intrigued to learn Michael was from Malta. And he could speak to the friendly waiter in Italian, so mille grazie for that.
![[Headshot of Dining across the divider Michael]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/923b0c0335ae75b8623ff2b54045284afa59ae0f/5505_1479_1652_1652/master/1652.jpg?width=120&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Michael To begin with, the conversation was a bit robotic, but we got on to our kids, and realised we’d both been involved in dementia research. I work in dementia modelling, and Allison had worked for Alzheimer’s Research UK. Then everything warmed up.
![[Dining across the dividers Allison (left) and Michael, facing each other across a restaurant table]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f2c24b1dc9fd823788e835fb32f6273136077b41/0_534_8012_4810/master/8012.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Allison I had some very tender pork with dates and pistachios, washed down with lashings of good house red. Michael had the steak, and nobly allowed me a spoonful of his tiramisu. It was all delicious. Allison I’ve heard somebody dying in pain in a hospice. There’s a noise you make when you’re in labour because you’re in so much pain, and that’s the sound the woman was making. Her relatives were weeping in the corridor – it seemed inhumane. That’s why assisted dying should be an option.
![[Dining across the divider Michael at a restaurant table]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/6c8e030bdad0e9c3883e6e3332f81e7d464427ba/0_0_5488_3659/master/5488.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
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