‘Dark day’ for Scotland as MSPs vote for abortion clinic buffer zones

A Bill to ban peaceful pro-life vigils, including prayer and offers of help, outside abortion clinics was passed overwhelmingly by Scottish parliamentarians on Wednesday evening.

Gillian Mackay’s Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Bill was passed by 118 votes to 1 at Holyrood.

Once implemented, anyone participating in a pro-life vigil inside a buffer zone outside a Scottish hospital or abortion facility would face fines of as much as £10,000.

The ban would exclude even praying silently throughout the designated zones. 

“Today’s vote means never again should a lady should be stripped of her dignity, privacy or emotion in opting to have an abortion. It enshrines her right to achieve this, and to achieve this without fear or intimidation,” said Mackay.

“A girl’s right to come to a decision what happens to her body is no-one else’s business but her own and that’s the message being sent loud and clear across Scotland tonight.”

The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) said the ban would infringe on civil liberties and stop vulnerable women from with the ability to receive help outside clinics. 

SPUC General Secretary Michael Robinson called the laws “deeply flawed” and said it “seeks to police areas of our private lives, which the state has no right to interfere with, namely private thought and prayer”.

“By voting in favour of the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) bill, MSPs have trampled on not less than 4 European Convention of Human Rights and have introduced thoughtcrime into Scottish society,” he said.

“Scotland has taken a colossal step backwards for civil liberties and has established itself as essentially the most illiberal and anti-free speech nation within the Western world.

“This is indeed a dark day in Scotland’s history.”

SPUC said it’s considering a judicial review into the laws. It is urging people to vote for pro-life candidates within the forthcoming general election. 

“This devasting situation in Scotland proves just how vital it’s to value your vote, and elect pro-life representatives,”  said Robinson.