Abortion ‘buffer zone’ law comes into force in Britain

By Anugrah KumarChristian Post Contributor Saturday November 2, 2024

A new law creating ‘buffer zones’ around abortion clinics has come into force across Britain, banning protests within 150 meters of these facilities.

The legislation, which came into effect this week, makes it illegal to engage in activities designed to influence or hinder individuals from accessing abortion services, including silent prayer.

The new law, which took effect Thursday, bans protests — including silent prayer, handing out anti-abortion leaflets and holding vigils — within 500 feet of abortion facilities.

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The Home Office specified that the ban covers “any conduct where a person deliberately attempts – or acts recklessly in a way that could – influence a person accessing the service.” according to to De Telegraaf.

“The idea that any woman feels unsafe or harassed when accessing health care, including abortion clinics, is sickening. This ends today,” Home Secretary Jess Phillips said: The Telegraph added.

Police Secretary Dame Diana Johnson said she was “confident that the safeguards we have put in place today will have a real impact on helping women feel safer and empowered to access the essential services they need to have.”

The Crown Prosecution Service has issued guidance stating that silent prayer within these buffer zones will “not necessarily” constitute a criminal offence. “Someone carrying out any of these activities (including silent prayer) within a safe access zone will not necessarily commit an offence,” the CPS said. Prosecutors are advised to consider the context and whether the conduct can be defined as a protest under the law.

The implementation of the buffer zone law comes after Parliament passed the Public Order Act 2023.

Violations can result in up to six months in prison and unlimited fines. according to to the Catholic News Agency.

Jeremiah Igunnubole, Legal Advisor to Alliance Defending Freedom UK, concerns expressed above the law.

“The law is so vaguely written that peaceful, consensual conversation or even silent thought could be made illegal on certain streets of England,” he said, adding: “We have already seen the prosecution of individuals like Adam Smith-Connor, which only put an end to the law. to pray mentally for a few minutes.”

Army veteran and pro-life protester Smith-Connor was recently convicted of praying silently in a buffer zone. He was given a two-year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £9,000 (about $11,600) after being found guilty of breaching the ban on an abortion clinic.

With the support of ADF UK, Smith-Connor is appealing his conviction. “The government simply cannot be allowed to determine the content of thoughts and prayers,” he said.

Smith-Connor served in Afghanistan. “I served 20 years in the Army Reserves to protect the fundamental freedoms this country was built on,” he added. “I am deeply disturbed to see our freedoms being eroded to the extent that crimes are now being prosecuted in Britain.”

The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children UK criticized the new law, describing its coming into force as “a day of shame for England and Wales” and “a chilling moment in Britain’s history.”

Pro-life activist Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, director of March for Life UK, called the decision to pass the law a “national disgrace”.

Prior to the CPS guidance, ADF UK launched a petition to be delivered to government officials which attracted almost 60,000 signatures. The petition urged authorities to reconsider the legislation, claiming it was responsible for “creating thought crime.”

The buffer zones were previously only enforced in five councils in Britain. The expansion of the law has sparked debates about what constitutes harassment and its potential infringement on freedom of thought and expression.

“The right to have a consensual conversation or to pray silently constitutes the most fundamental of human rights,” Igunnubole argued. “They are strongly protected by international law regarding freedom of thought and expression.”

Labor officials replaced the previous Conservative government’s draft guidelines, which had suggested silent prayer should be allowed within the new ‘safe access zones’. Instead, the current directive prohibits any attempt to influence a woman’s decision about abortion within the buffer zones.