Over a year after legislation was passed to introduce protection zones around clinics in England and Wales, the law will finally be enforceable from the end of October, the Home Office has announced. Safe access buffer zones will mean that anti- demonstrations within 150m radius of an provider will be illegal, and offenders will be subject to unlimited fines. Securing buffer zones has long been a focal point of who have revealed how women seeking legal terminations have been subject to harassment and fear tactics outside abortion providers, with clinic staff also facing intimidation.
While the new law around safe access zones was introduced under the previous government with cross-party support (under the Public Order Act 2023), implementation of the measures faced delays, leading to criticism from prominent politicians and campaigners. Pro-choice campaigners questioned whether pressure from anti-abortion groups might be to blame for the delay. The zones, which will be implemented from October 31 this year, will apply to any clinic and private hospital that is approved under the Abortion Act 1967 and for NHS hospitals carrying out abortions.
Measures will ban behaviour or people that seek to intentionally or recklessly influence someone’s decision to access abortion services, harass patients or staff around clinics or anything that might obstruct someone from seeking the vital healthcare provision. In January last year, questions were raised as to whether guidance around bu.