A law banning pro-lifers from standing or congregating near abortion facilities has gone into effect in Scotland. The Safe Access Zones Act creates so-called buffer zones of 656 feet around clinics, prohibiting anyone from attempting to influence women’s decisions to abort their babies.
Currently, there are 30 abortion providers in Scotland—which has a population just over 5 million—that now have buffer zones. Local police are enforcing the new law, and those who violate the boundaries can face fines of up to 10,000 pounds (around $13,000).
Scotland Green Party Parliament Member Gillian McKay is behind the law, claiming that the pro-life presence is damaging to women.
But the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) posted on X: “Buffer zone legislation is an affront to basic freedoms in Scotland. Criminalizing someone for praying or offering help to a woman is an outrageous and dangerous precedent.”
Although many different groups and individuals pray outside clinics and offer women abortion alternatives, 40 Days for Life has one of the largest presences. The U.S.-based ministry is gearing up for 40 days of prayer outside abortion providers in Scotland. Prayer vigil instructions posted on the group’s website encourage participants to pray, rather than engage with clinic staff, clients or passers-by.
A similar law—passed in May 2023—will go into effect in England and Wales on Oct. 31. Currently, there are 15 U.S. states, plus the District of Columbia, that place restrictions on pro-life groups outside of abortion clinics. Four of those states—Massachusetts, Colorado, Montana, and Maryland—enforce buffer zones around clinics.
In 2014, Alliance Defending Freedom successfully challenged a so-called buffer zone law in Massachusetts that would have prohibited pro-life groups and individuals from engaging anyone within 35 feet of abortion providers. The law was determined unconstitutional and overturned. Today, the buffer zone in the state is 25 feet, but it is in effect only if ordered by police.
