US department ‘disappointed’ by UK court’s conviction of anti-abortion activist

A US government department has said it is “disappointed” by the conviction of a UK campaigner who protested outside an abortion clinic, saying “freedom of expression must be protected for all”.

Livia Tossici-Bolt was found guilty at Poole Magistrates’ Court of two charges of breaching a Public Spaces Protection Order by violating a “buffer zone” outside a Bournemouth clinic on two days in March 2023 and was handed a two-year conditional discharge.

The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, & Labour (DRL), of the US Department of State, posted a statement on X, saying: “We are disappointed with the UK court’s conviction of Livia Tossici-Bolt for violating a designated ‘buffer zone’ at an abortion clinic.”

It added: “Freedom of expression must be protected for all.”

The case involved the 64-year-old from Bournemouth holding a sign saying “Here to talk, if you want”.

The council-enacted buffer zone, which came into effect in 2022 and covers 10 streets, is aimed at protecting patients and staff from harassment and distress while accessing the clinic.

District Judge Orla Austin also ordered Tossici-Bolt to pay £20,000 towards court costs and a £26 victim surcharge.

Speaking after the case, Tossici-Bolt, a retired medical scientist, said: “This is a dark day for Great Britain. I was not protesting and did not harass or obstruct anyone.

“All I did was offer consensual conversation in a public place, as is my basic right, and yet the court found me guilty.

“Freedom of expression is in a state of crisis in the UK. What has happened to this country? The US State Department was right to be concerned by this case as it has serious implications for the entire Western world.

“I remain committed to fighting for free speech, not only for my own sake, but for all my fellow citizens. If we allow this precedent of censorship to stand, nobody’s right to freely express themselves is secure.

“With ADF International’s support, I will now consider all legal options.”

Downing Street said it was vital that women using abortion services can do so “without being subject to harassment or distress”, and the right to protest does not “give people the right to harass others”.

Asked about the conviction, a Number 10 spokesman said: “Obviously sentencing decisions are a matter for the courts so I wouldn’t cut across that.

“It’s vital that a woman who decides to use abortion services has the right to do so without being subject to harassment or distress.”

The official said laws on buffer zones reinforce that “the right to protest is a cornerstone of our democracy”, but that it “does not give people the right to harass others”.

Asked whether there is a problem with free speech in the UK, the spokesman said Britain has “a very proud tradition of free speech over many centuries, and we remain proud of it today”.

The judge said that Tossici-Bolt had “deeply held” beliefs but her rights of freedom of expression under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) had to be balanced against the rights of the women attending the clinic and its staff.

She said: “I accept that the defendant engaged in the conduct underlying this case as part of a sincerely motivated desire to attend that location and display her signage outside the clinic, encouraging conversation in relation to matters of particular importance to her.

“This does not mean that her conviction for failing to leave the area when required would be disproportionate, nor give rise to a reasonable excuse on the facts of this case.”

She added: “The zone is reduced to a small area that is necessary to protect the rights of those using and/or visiting the clinic.”

BCP (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole) Council welcomed Tossici-Bolt’s conviction, stating that the buffer zone enacted in 2022 was there so patients and staff “could safely access” the clinic “without fear of intimidation”.

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (Bpas) said the case was “never about global politics” but instead women being able to “access legal healthcare free from harassment”.

The legal counsel for ADF International, Lorcan Price, said “everyone who cares about free speech should care about ‘buffer zones’”, which he said were “incompatible with a free society”.

His colleague, Jeremiah Igunnubole, claimed there had been a “redefinition of words” and that an “objective and reasonable individual doesn’t consider a peaceful, quiet offer of a conversation” to be harassment.