A report commissioned by Christian Concern has shown that laws creating “abortion buffer zones” are being “weaponised” to remove Christian beliefs from public view.
The report highlights how laws which were originally designed to tackle anti-social behaviour, reminiscent of loutishness, dog fouling and drinking in public, have been used to police the general public expression of views.
This approach was pioneered by Ealing Council, which used a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) to ban all public opposition to abortion inside certain spaces. Other councils followed suit and in 2023 the British government rolled out abortion buffer zones everywhere in the country.
Since October 2024 expressing any type of opposition to abortion throughout the zones is effectively illegal. Even those that don’t explicitly state anti-abortion views have fallen foul of the brand new regime.
One such was Adam Smith-Connor, a military veteran who was issued a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) for silently praying throughout the designated zone in 2022. Smith-Connor was not even in sight of the abortion centre on the time, and said he was praying for his son who was aborted 22 years previously.
Speaking to Christian Concern, Smith-Connor said, “I served for 20 years in the military reserves, including a tour in Afghanistan, to guard the elemental freedoms that this country is built upon … It troubles me greatly to see our freedoms eroded to the extent that thoughtcrimes at the moment are being prosecuted within the UK.”
Other cases have seen Christians arrested for silently praying or for holding signs offering to have a conversation.
The report notes that in addition to being subject to those draconian laws, there’s a robust disincentive for Christians to challenge abuses, because of the financial cost.
Christians issued with FPNs may appeal at a magistrates’ court, nonetheless councils are in a position to mount private prosecutions against perceived offenders. In such a case, should the accused lose their case, they may very well be on the hook for tens of hundreds of kilos in legal costs for the council.
By contrast, if the Crown Prosecution took up the case, they’d only face costs of £250 within the case of a defeat.
The report says that this raises serious questions on whether those against abortion have equal access to justice. In effect, the local councils imposing these rules have all of the benefits.
Andrea Williams, Chief Executive of Christian Concern, said, “At the guts of this issue lies a fundamental query: should the state have the ability to silence compassionate voices offering alternatives to abortion?
“The evidence presented here [in this report] shows that buffer zones are usually not only unnecessary but additionally dangerously authoritarian. They suppress dissent, marginalise Christian beliefs, and erode the very freedoms that underpin our democracy.”
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