It creates an offence for being publicly pro-life. It is direct viewpoint discrimination,say opponents of proposed legislation
By Bill Heaney
The Safe Access Zones Bill passed stage one at Holyrood today after a majority of MSPs voted in favour of the proposed legislation.
The bill, created by Scottish Greens MSP Gillian Mackay, right, will now officially progress to stage two, where it will receive amendments and further scrutiny ahead of the final vote at stage three.
It is unlikely that it will ever come to that however. Too many MSPs will decline to vote for it, not because of the value they place on human life, or their political pinciples, but for the purely selfish reason that if they do then they can almost certainly say goodbye to the Catholic vote.
Self preservation – without power there is little or nothing that can be achieved in politics – for many politicians comes streets ahead of protecting the lives of babies in embryo.
The so-called slaughter of the innocents, as abortion is widely known, is seldom accepted as a good reason for banning or placing limits on abortion.
There is no way that there are as many Catholics in Scotland of an age to vote as there were well into the second half of last century.
But there were enough of them to doggedly hang to contentious issues such as segregated schools, for example.
The Catholic population in the 1970s for example was claimed by their media office to be around 800,000. It is nothing like that now. There is a critical shortage of priests and churches are closing.
Although the Latin Mass has almost gone and events such as Corpus Christi processions have been consigned to the past, there are issues in the public square that a significant number of Catholics are still prepared to campaign against – and legalising abortion is at the top of a very short list with nuclear weapons coming only a distant second.
If passed, this bill would create 200 metre safe access zones outside 30 hospitals and clinics providing abortion services. The areas – otherwise known as ‘buffer zones’ – would prevent anti-choice campaign groups from protesting outside.
Ms Mackay thanked all of the MSPs who have voted to support her Safe Access Zones bill in today’s Stage 1 debate.
She described it as a key moment for the bill, which will now proceed to stage 2 where it will receive further scrutiny, before a final vote at stage 3.
“I am proud to have received the support of so many MSPs from across our chamber,” she said.
“It is a sign of how seriously our Parliament takes this issue, and the importance that MSPs from all parties put on protecting reproductive rights and safe access to healthcare.
“All over Scotland, there are women who have sought abortion care and felt unable to defend themselves in the face of activity designed to shame and frighten them. My bill will put a stop to this.
“A lot of the people who have shared their stories with me have been left feeling judged and vulnerable by protesters, and some have felt scared accessing healthcare they are entitled to.
“It is sad and infuriating that my bill is even necessary, but I don’t want anyone else to experience this kind of harassment.
“I want this to be the strongest bill that it can be, and I look forward to working with MSPs from all parties to ensure it is as robust as possible and that we end the protests for good.”
Back off Scotland, which has been campaigning for the right to harassment-free access to abortion services since 2020, said it was “delighted” by the latest development.
Co-founder Lucy Grieve said: “We’re delighted that the Bill is now at Stage 1, and are hopeful that it will pass. It has been a long, and at times very difficult, four years of campaigning and it feels great to get to this stage. We’ve received so many messages from women across Scotland who have faced this harassment first-hand.
“From a university student seeking an abortion after her pill failed; to a teenager who had been sexually assaulted and required sexual healthcare from a clinic; to a woman who had to abort her baby due to severe foetal abnormalities; to doctors that preform abortions themselves; the stories are endless and wide-reaching. There was one common theme though: that they all felt intimidated and harassed by the presence of these protestors.
“It’s absolutely right that this legislation has been brought forward to the Scottish Parliament – it really isn’t a moment too soon. We hope that politicians have listened to the stories women have bravely shared with them, and do the right thing by them.”
Fraser Sutherland, Chief Executive of Humanist Society Scotland, said: “It was pleasing to see the Parliament work on a cross-party basis together and being evidence led. There is no reasonable argument for allowing harassment of women who want to access their legal right to an abortion.
“These protests have been imported to Scotland by fundamentalist groups based in the US in a bid to replicate their toxic tactics. The reality is those opposed to abortion have lost the democratic debate on the issue and instead of campaigning for change at Parliament would rather intimidate the public and medical practitioners.”
The Bill passed at stage one by 123 votes to one.
Scottish Parliament admits that policing ‘silent prayer’ in abortion ‘buffer zones’ difficult to manage
From the Catholic Herald
April 24, 2024 at 9:46 am
The Scottish Parliament has moved a step closer to sanctioning the “world’s most extreme buffer zone law” that could criminalise “private thoughts”, while acknowledging the difficulties in policing the law, especially when it comes to silent prayer.
The proposed “safe access zone” that the law would establish includes not only the facility – usually a hospital or clinic – in which abortions are performed, but also land within 200 metres of the edge of the protected premises. The proposed law says the 200 metres may be extended by the Scottish government following an application by the relevant Health Board or health provider.
The Scottish Parliament’s Health, Social Care and Sport Committee has been gathering evidence from individuals and organisations regarding the proposal to establish buffer zones, including Superintendent Gerry Corrigan of Police Scotland, reports Crux.
Despite strong pushback against the proposed new law, including polling indicating that Scots are uncomfortable about the new law, the committee has now published its “Stage 1” report, expressing broad support for the proposed legislation.
When it comes to the issue of silent prayer occurring, the report states that the committee undertook extensive discussion on the issue but “remains unclear how the intent of those silently praying can be interpreted”.
The committee admits that “it could be difficult for the police to reach a clear decision whether the law has been broken by people standing silently praying, in the absence of any other behaviour”.
The case of Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, a Catholic who was arrested twice in 10 months for praying silently near a Birmingham abortion clinic, brought the issue of laws mandating so-called buffer zones versus silent prayer and freedom of conscience to a head in England.
In his evidence on the possibility of policing “thought”, Superintendent Corrigan told the committee that the police could not “go down the road of asking people what they are thinking or what their thoughts are,” saying that it makes him feel “really uncomfortable”.
The Committee report stated that while “it recognises the right to protest and private thought as a cornerstone of a free democracy…given the clear scope of the current bill, the committee is assured that any extension of ‘safe access zones’ or similar prohibition of vigils or protests would require additional and separate primary legislation and the scrutiny and proportionality assessments that accompany it.”
The report continues: “It would also be helpful to clarify which people or bodies are responsible for collecting ongoing evidence about the impact of safe access zones on both people accessing abortion services and those engaged in protests and vigils. The Committee agrees with the definition of ‘protected premises’ as set out in the Bill.”
Spokesperson for Right To Life UK, Catherine Robinson, said if the bill becomes law, an extreme buffer zone law will be introduced in Scotland.
“This legislation goes further than any buffer zone legislation in any other jurisdictions, creating a larger buffer zone than anywhere else in the world and giving the Scottish Government powers to extend these zones without limit,” she said.
“Many women have been helped outside abortion clinics by pro-life volunteers who have provided them with practical support, which made it clear to them that they had another option other than going through with the abortion,” Robinson said.
“The proposed law change would mean that the vital practical support provided by volunteers outside abortion clinics will be removed for women and many more lives would likely be lost to abortion,” she continued.
“This is a truly draconian piece of legislation that reaches into the homes of ordinary people. It creates an offence for being publicly pro-life. It is direct viewpoint discrimination,” Robinson added.
Scotland recently introduced a new Hate Crime and Public Order Act designed to eradicate prejudice against groups who have historically suffered discrimination. The new law, which came into force on 1 April 2024, has been criticised for creating a new set of crimes that trespass on the freedoms of thought, belief and religion.
As a result of the new “hate” law, statements relating to age, disability, religion, sexual orientation or gender deemed to “stir up hatred” can now get you a prison sentence of up to seven years, even if they’re made in the privacy of your own home.
The Scottish Parliament’s Health, Social Care and Sport Committee’s report will now be shared for a debate and vote in the Scottish Parliament scheduled to take place April 30.
Photo: Members of the public walk past a hate crime billboard in Glasgow, Scotland, 10 April 2024. More than 7,000 hate crime complaints were made in the first week of the contested new law coming into force on 1 April, Police Scotland announced, many made anonymously. The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act criminalises ‘threatening or abusive behaviour’ intended to stir up hatred against someone’s identity. It extends protection to groups including religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, and transgender identity, applying in people’s private homes and online. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images.)
Reality check. Rip the foetus out, throw it in the medical waste bin, and woe betide anyone who thinks there is a big issue about abortion.
An impossible issue between those who oppose and those who promote. But let us take the argument to the next stage. Old folks are economic dead weights. They consume resources, are a drag on younger folks. So why not euthanize them. Makes economic sense.
Or what about severely disabled people. More fiscal drag. Why not euthanize them too. Abortion, euthanasia two sides of the same coin. And now in relation to abortion the Scottish Parliament is going to ban people promoting a view that abortion is wrong. A small step next to do the same for euthanasia.
Yes, rip them out and put them in the medical bin, or with the old and infirm just put them down. And no dissention allowed.