Victoria's debate and conscience vote on a controversial assisted dying bill is a chance for the parliament to rise above partisan, "rival football team" politics, Premier Daniel Andrews says.
State parliament returns on Tuesday and the assisted dying bill that could see the terminally ill be granted the right to choose their death is scheduled for debate.
Both sides have left the door open for MPs to vote with their conscience.
Premier Daniel Andrews has led a push, strengthened by Health Minister Jill Hennessy, for the change in law after watching his father die of cancer.
"I am fully respectful of the fact that there are lots of different views on this and people will voice those and hopefully we can show Victorians the parliament's not always about partisan politics," he told reporters on Sunday.
"(It's) part of demonstrating that the parliament can work in a different way, not the usual rival football team model, but people searching their conscience and coming to a reasoned conclusion."
Mr Andrews made the comments at the opening of a new children's hospital school alongside education minister and deputy premier James Merlino - who staunchly opposes the move.
"As you'll see with all conscience vote debates, there'll be a lot of passion, but it will be respectful, there are strong views held on either side and it is not partisan in any sense," Mr Merlino said.
"Before you today is a premier and deputy premier with different points of view and we'll express those next week."
Last week former Australian Medical Association president Brian Owler, who led an expert panel for the government on an assisted dying scheme, implored Victorian MPs not to "waste" the opportunity to legalise the practice.
"The arguments that suggest that because a person is suffering and dying, a decision to ask for voluntary assisted dying means that they are not of sound mind, are not only paternalistic, they are offensive," Dr Owler told the National Press Club in Canberra on Thursday.
The bill sets out a rigorous request and assessment process, accessible only to the terminally ill, and includes new criminal offences.
Only adults with less than 12 months to live and who have the mental capacity to request assistance will be allowed to access the scheme.
They will have to make three clear, self-initiated requests and have two independent medical assessments.
Doctors who raise the issue to a patient will be subject to misconduct investigations and anyone who coerces a person into seeking assisted dying faces jail time.
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