Nearly 60,000 people in the UK have signed an open letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, urging him to reconsider naming silent prayer as a criminal offense.
The letter, circulated by Alliance Defending Freedom UK, references the Public Spaces Protection Orders that have been responsible for the arrests of pro-lifers including Isabel Vaughan-Spruce and Father Sean Gough, who were both charged with a crime after silently praying outside an abortion facility, but later acquitted. It also references the case of Adam Smith-Connor, who was charged with a similar crime but was not acquitted; instead, he was found guilty and ordered to pay a large fine.
“Prime Minister, it is concerning that reports suggest that you are now actively considering naming silent prayer as a criminal offence in government guidance. This would be a deeply worrying move, particularly given your manifesto commitment to ‘uphold human rights and international law,’ both of which protect thoughts (including those raised to God in silent prayer) as an absolute right,” the letter says.
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“In over ten civil proceedings and criminal charges regarding silent prayer, the legal outcome has been clear on each occasion: silent prayer is not a crime, and the state has no authority to censor our thoughts.”
The UK’s buffer zones have come under fire for their extreme attack on fundamental freedoms; not only can a person not protest or counsel in front of abortion facilities, but even silent prayer is outlawed. Often these “protection zones” stretch for blocks around abortion facilities and they even limit signage a person may have on private property. As the law is challenged, the government response has been a mixed bag as to whether or not these silent prayer arrests are lawful — a fact prompting letter writers to appeal to Starmer.
“Prime Minister, we urge you to refrain from issuing guidance that ignores the courts, domestic and international law, and the fundamental rights of the members of public who put you into power,” the letter goes on, concluding: “[P]lease act urgently to ensure that thought is never buffered, censored or criminalised.”
