The following is a guest post Dr. Timothy Tomkinson. 

Last month, Ealing Borough Council took the step of using Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) to prevent anti-abortion protesters near abortion clinics. Since then, there have been calls by MPs and organisations such as the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), to deploy these PSPOs across other areas of the country.

There are three points here, relevant to people who have no strong views on the topic of abortion itself. Firstly, the right to protest; secondly, truly providing a choice and; thirdly, the government funding for a monopoly which generates great revenue for private interests.

The following is a guest post by the Rev Dr Peter Mullen, Hon. Chaplain of The Freedom Association. 

As we all know, we have the great blessing of comprehensive freedom of speech in this country – but not if you wish to protest peacefully about mass murder.

Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, has said he favours the banning of pro-life vigils outside abortion clinics. 113 MPs agree with him and they aim to set up “buffer zones” outside the clinics to prevent these protests. Already, two local authorities in England – Ealing and Portsmouth - have voted to ban these vigils by using public space protection orders (PSPO), which allow local authorities to criminalise behaviour not normally considered criminal.