A pensioner has become the first person in Scotland to be charged for allegedly breaching the nation’s new abortion buffer zones law.
Police Scotland was told about a group of protesters outside Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital at around 2.05pm on Wednesday.
Officers attended and a 74-year-old woman was arrested and charged in connection with an alleged breach of the exclusion zone in Hardgate Road.
A force spokesperson said: “She will be reported to the procurator fiscal.”
This is the first arrest and charge in Scotland under the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Act 2024.
The legislation was created to prevent anti-abortion protesters from gathering within 200 metres of the 30 hospitals and medical facilities across the nation where terminations are carried out.
It came into force last September.
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Scottish Greens MSP Gillian Mackay, who introduced the bill, condemned the demonstrators.
She said: “The protests that have taken place outside the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital have been utterly shameful and I am grateful to Police Scotland for acting so quickly.
“This kind of intimidation has no place in a modern or progressive Scotland.
“Everybody deserves to have access to healthcare without harassment. That is why I introduced my act, and why these disgraceful protests are now illegal.
“We know the awful impact that these protests have had. Some of the testimonies from women who have had to endure them have been heartbreaking.”
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The protest comes just days after US vice president JD Vance was criticised for spreading misinformation about the legislation.
Donald Trump’s deputy alleged that residents within the safe access zones had been sent letters by the Scottish government “warning them that even private prayer within their own homes may amount to breaking the law”.
He claimed the government “urged readers to report any fellow citizens suspected guilty of thought crime”.
Mr Vance added: “In Britain and across Europe, free speech, I fear, is in retreat.”
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In response, Health Secretary Neil Gray branded the claim “ludicrous”.
The Scottish government also said it was “incorrect”, adding: “Private prayer at home is not prohibited within safe access zones and no letter has ever suggested it was.”
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Ms Mackay urged all those considering future demonstrations to “think again, as they will be stopped and there will be consequences”.
She added: “It’s no coincidence that this has happened so soon after JD Vance and his supporters have spread toxic misinformation about Scotland.
“It is vital that we stand up for reproductive rights and against those who are working to undermine them.”
