Praying at home could be a criminal offense under new law in Scotland

Scotland has passed new abortion legislation that could criminalize praying at home within designated zones. The Abortion Services Act (Scotland) 2024 could result in prosecution for activities carried out in their own home if these actions cause “intimidation, alarm or fear” to staff and patients at abortion clinics.

Edinburgh residents received letters warning them of the new law, The Telegraph reported, noting that the legislation will establish “safe access zones” of 200 meters around all abortion clinics in the country.

A letter to residents of a zone in Edinburgh said: “Activities in a private place (such as a house) within the area between the conservation area and the boundary of a zone may be a criminal offense if they can be seen or heard within the zone. and are done intentionally or recklessly.”

Receive our latest news for FREE

Subscribe to receive daily/weekly email with the best stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know.

Less serious offenses carry fines of up to £10,000 ($13,000), while the most serious offenses carry an unlimited fine, the letter said.

Michael Robinson, executive director of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, called the legislation “sinister and deeply Orwellian,” suggesting it could also involve “someone praying quietly in their front yard.”

An Edinburgh resident shared her surprise when she received the letter. “As a Christian, I pray all the time,” she said. “It is truly unbelievable to think that this could now be a criminal offence, even near my own home.”

The Scottish Government’s guidance on the law lists “religious preaching” and “silent vigils” as examples of activities that could be banned if carried out “intentionally or recklessly”, according to GB News.

A Scottish Government spokesperson defended the legislation. “Safe access zones are designed to ensure women’s right to access healthcare. The legislation it deliberately creates does not criminalize any particular behavior, including prayer.”

However, pro-life campaigners fear that praying within these zones could be considered an offence, especially following the arrest of several activists for harassment and public order offenses in England and Northern Ireland.

Andrea Williams, CEO of Christian Concern, said her group would “vigilantly” monitor the application of buffer zone legislation in Britain.

The British-based Christian Institute noted that under Scottish law, people face an unlimited fine for handing out pro-life literature within 200 meters of an abortion facility, speaking to someone about abortion or praying silently. The law prohibits conduct that aims to influence “another person’s decision to access, perform, or facilitate an abortion.” It also criminalizes any person deemed to “prevent or hinder” another person or cause “intimidation, alarm or anxiety” in connection with their “decision to access, perform or facilitate an abortion”.

Similar legislation will come into force across England and Wales at the end of October.

English law criminalizes activities “at any location” within 150 meters of abortion providers that could deter or alarm staff and patients if those activities are “visible from a public highway, public right of way, open space to which the public has access has.” access, or restricting an abortion clinic,” according to GB News.

Lucy Grieve, co-founder of Back Off Scotland, wrote in The Herald that the activists’ “next priority” is to campaign to expand abortion services in Scotland and that they “look forward to working together in the coming months with the Scottish Government to look at ways we can reform Scotland’s archaic abortion law,” the Christian Institute said.