‘You have the right to free speech. But you don’t.’

A member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) has continued to speak out despite having been reprimanded by the Scottish National Party for social media comments about abortion.

John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston and a Christian, posted on Twitter earlier this year after observing a protest at an abortion provider and speaking with activists who held signs saying some women regret abortions.

He tweeted: ‘Surely these signs are very gentle and offering help? I do not see anything hateful or harassing about these signs.’

In June this year the SNP, which is pushing for buffer zones around abortion clinics, sent him a letter formally disciplining him for his ‘conduct’. It said the SNP ‘absolutely respect your right to hold your views on abortion and your right to freedom of speech and expression’ – but went on to say: ‘The verbalisation of your views has caused great distress and trauma to many women’ and he had no right to impose his views on others.

The letter, coming from two SNP whips, accused him of bringing the party into dispute and described his ‘breach’ as serious. It gave him a formal warning.

Mason has continued to make a stand. At October’s annual SNP conference, he spoke out against a resolution tabled to legalise ‘buffer zones’ to prevent protests around abortion clinics.

Speaking to en, Mason said: ‘Sometimes you do need to make a stand on an issue just because it is the right thing to do. Most political parties have traditionally allowed freedom of conscience on issues like abortion and assisted dying, and the SNP is no different.

‘It is important that we resist any drift away from free speech whether within our parties, in the parliaments, or in wider society. Of course we should not be stirring up hatred or anything like that. But if we speak with moderation and care, it should be possible to disagree respectfully with each other even when discussing controversial subjects like abortion.”