Buffer zone law banning anti-abortion protests outside clinics set to go into effect in England, Wales

As Kendall Robbins finished up a shift as a registered nurse providing abortion care in London, she noticed an anti-abortion protester outside her clinic's window.

The man, who was known among clinic staff to be particularly aggressive, had a history of disruption attempts -- going as far as blocking the doorway and even following patients down the street.

"I was really afraid to go out there," Robbins told ABC News.

But outside, when he confronted her this time, Robbins responded with defiance: "I'm really looking forward to the 31st of October."

National buffer zone laws at abortion clinics across England and Wales are set to go into effect Thursday, banning any action that aims to influence, obstruct, or harass those accessing or providing abortion care within 150 meters of clinics and hospitals.

Abortion providers and abortion rights advocates say the safe access zones are a major step forward in the fight for accessible, safe and private abortion care.

"It probably shouldn't have taken this long, but we're really pleased that it's finally happening," Louise McCudden, the U.K. head of external affairs at MSI Reproductive Choices, told ABC News.

Anti-abortion groups said the buffer zone laws infringed on freedom of speech and religion.

"If illiberal and censorious buffer zones are enforced, Britain's tradition of democracy and liberty will be forever compromised," Alithea Williams, the public policy manager at the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, said in a statement.

Supporters of the buffer zones said these freedoms should not compromise women's right to safe and confidential health care.

Although the buffer zone law was officially passed in May 2023, Suella Braverman -- the former home secretary in the previous government run by the Conservative Party -- did not officially commence the law during her tenure. This feature of the British parliamentary system meant that even though buffer zones were officially signed into law, they were not active in the public domain until commenced by the home secretary.

Braverman had voted against buffer zones and was known for her opposition to measures expanding abortion access. In a 2023 letter to police constables in England and Wales more than three months after the law was passed, she stated, "It is worth remembering that silent prayer, in itself, is not unlawful." Her delay in commencing the law allowed abortion protests outside clinics to continue for a year-and-a-half after buffer zone laws were officially passed.

Abortion providers like MSI Reproductive Choices and the British Pregnancy Advisory Service received reports of anti-abortion protesters using tactics like yelling and spitting at patients, recording them with body cameras, comparing abortions to the Holocaust and distributing misleading information claiming abortions cause breast cancer.

There have been significant upticks in anti-abortion protests in the U.K. since 2022 when Roe v. Wade was overturned in the United States, ending a period of nearly half a century that generally protected a woman's right to an abortion.

"You see some of that extremist religious language coming out of the U.S. to the U.K.," said Rachael Clarke, the head of advocacy at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service.

Robbins said she and her patients could sometimes hear protesters singing hymns and see them holding graphic images from the consultation room.

"It's really upsetting and distressing because it impacts my ability to provide safe health care as a nurse," she said.

Robbins said her patients' reactions are mixed, with some of them angry, some ignoring the protesters completely and some finding walking past them "very emotionally difficult."

"You don't know if they are a victim of sexual assault or domestic violence, or even if this is the hardest thing they've ever had to do because they're going to start chemotherapy and can't continue with the pregnancy," she added.

Advocates hope the new buffer zone law sets a global example. "It sends a message at a time when we are seeing very real rollbacks around the world, not least in the United States," McCudden said.

"No one should be harassed accessing health care," Robbins said.