Lambeth Labour welcomes the Labour Government’s announcement to introduce buffer zones around abortion clinics and we are proud of the part we have played in realising this policy.

For many years, our Labour-led Council has worked closely with Marie Stopes and the British Pregnancy Advisory Service to collate evidence of harmful protests, as well as calling on previous governments to implement buffer zones around abortion clinics. In 2019 we introduced an online reporting tool and encouraged residents to report anti-social behaviour outside clinics.

Women seeking an abortion are frequently subjected to graphic imagery, plastic foetuses and inaccurate leaflets addressing them as “mum”. While Lambeth Council has taken measures to combat this harassment, we are relieved that national Government is taking the much needed action to protect women and girls in our borough from this behaviour.

Cllr Jacqui Dyer, Cabinet Member for Healthier Communities, said “We are glad that we finally have a Labour Government who will prioritise the rights of residents to access safe abortion services. We have always stood by a woman’s rights to choose and we always will. This is also important for the safety of reproductive health clinic staff. “Furthermore, we know from consultations that our residents overwhelmingly support this policy.”