An in-depth report on abortion buffer zones says there are serious issues around freedom of belief, religion and speech.
The report also concludes that “a pro-abortion worldview has in effect been legally prioritised and protected from any form of criticism” and calls for the government to introduce a Freedom of Religion Act.
Local authorities have power to impose buffer zones – formally called “public space protection orders” – under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 and the Public Order Act 2023. The powers were intended to tackle general anti-social behaviour, but have been used to crack down on any form of anti-abortion presence outside abortion clinics and hospitals.
The independent report, ‘Abortion Buffer Zones; Protecting the Vulnerable or Reintroducing State Censorship?’ was commissioned by Christian Concern (CC) and written by Martin Parsons and Gregory Gardner.
They concluded that the parliamentary debates leading to legislation revealed “significant lack of religious literacy … as well as a significant lack of literacy in relation to the historical development of freedom of religion or belief and freedom of speech”. The authors’ recommendations include that a UK Freedom of Religion Act should be enacted.
Many legislators, added the authors, failed to understand that two conflicting worldviews were held, with little if any attempt to balance them.
The report also noted that: “The evidence of women expressing gratitude after encountering pro-life supporters outside abortion clinics and being offered support which led to them positively changing their minds and deciding to continue their pregnancy, appears to have been given little weight.”
The authors called on the UK government to commission reviews of the compatibility of the legislation with international human rights law. CC said the report exposes how centuries of human rights and religious freedoms legislation are being dismantled.
Speaking at the launch, Martin Parsons said: “At no time in English constitutional history have there been any restrictions on private prayer in public places”, or any “restrictions on the content of what can be said in a public space.”
Pro-life campaigners have already been fined for silent prayer, something which has not been specifically excluded from the legislation. The report says: “This lack of clarity around the legality of silent prayer is of considerable significance because it has been a fundamental principle of English law since the reign of Edward IV (1461–70) that “the thoughts of a man are not triable”.
“This position is also affirmed in the understanding of both the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights.”
