JD Vance abortion buffer zone comments branded ‘dangerous’ by MSP

The American vice-president JD Vance has been accused of “spreading misinformation” about buffer zones at abortion clinics in Scotland.

In a speech at the the Munich Security Conference Vance claimed people who live within safe access zones had been sent letters by the Scottish government warning them about praying within their homes.

The Safe Access Zones Act came into force last September and prevents protestors gathering within 200m (656ft) of clinics that perform abortions.

A Scottish government spokesperson said no letters had been sent out, and only “intentional or reckless behaviour” was covered by the act.

Green MSP Gillian Mackay, who drew up the law, said Vance’s claims were “nonsense” and added that private prayer at home had never been impacted.

She said: “This is shocking and shameless misinformation from VP Vance, who is either very badly informed about what my Act has done or he is knowingly misrepresenting it.

“He is one of the most powerful people in the world but he is peddling total nonsense and dangerous scaremongering.”

Vance’s speech criticised Europe for not protecting free speech enough, saying that it was “in retreat”.

He cited the case of a man in Bournemouth who was convicted of breaching a safe zone after praying outside an abortion centre and refusing to move on.

The vice-president then added: “I wish I could say that this was a fluke, a one-off, crazy example of a badly written law being enacted against a single person.

“But no. This last October, just a few months ago, the Scottish government began distributing letters to citizens whose houses lay within so-called safe access zones, warning them that even private prayer within their own homes may amount to breaking the law.”

Vance then claimed the government had urged people to report people “guilty of thought crime”.

The Scottish government said Vance was “incorrect” with his comments, which were previously spread by Christian influencers on TikTok last year.

A spokesperson said: “Private prayer at home is not prohibited within safe access zones and no letter has ever suggested it was.

“Safe Access Zones are designed to safeguard a woman’s right to access healthcare and protect their right to dignity and respect when they need it most.

“People continue to have the right to protest and to free speech, however, no one has the right to harass women, or to try to influence without consent their decision to access healthcare, or to impede their access to it in any way.

“The Act, passed overwhelmingly by Parliament, has been carefully drafted to capture only intentional or reckless behaviour close to a small number of premises providing abortion services. It does not – and has never been intended to – criminalise any particular action, including silent prayer.”

Vance, who was a venture capitalist before turning to politics, converted to Catholicism in 2019.

In 2022 he called for a nationwide ban in America on abortion, suggesting that even in cases of rape or incest “two wrongs don’t make a right”.

Last year he altered his view and said it was a matter for individual states to decide upon.

He has previously been criticised for making claims without evidence, including repeatedly saying during the election campaign last year that migrants were eating pets in an Ohio town.

There are access zones at 30 health facilities around Scotland, including at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh and Dundee’s Ninewells Hospital.

Within the buffer zones, it is a criminal offence to behave in ways that could influence the decisions of women and staff to access services.

The bill was brought in after a number of anti-abortion groups continually protested near abortion facilities, including American organisation 40 Days For Life.