Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 13 November 2023 to Question 359 on Abortion: Demonstrations, what progress his Department has made on implementing safe access zones.

The Government recently ran a public consultation on non-statutory guidance to support the introduction of the offence of interference with access to or provision of abortion services, which closed on 22 January. We are now considering the responses received and will publish the final guidance in due course.

We anticipate commencing Section 9 of the Public Order Act 2023 no later than Spring 2024.