The financial interests threatening free speech in the UK
Several local councils have recently resolved to bring in Public Space Protection Orders, or PSPOs, around abortion facilities. Ealing Council was the first to vote on the issue, and it has been followed by Lambeth, Manchester, Richmond, Southwark and Portsmouth, among others. Lambeth has recently concluded its consultation period on the proposed PSPO; Ealing’s consultation period lasts until Monday 26 March.
PSPOs are essentially like Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) for a public space. They have typically been used to address local problems like street drinking, begging or dog fouling, although the looseness of the legislation introducing them, and the vagueness of many PSPOs themselves, have been widely criticised by civil liberties campaigners like Liberty and the Manifesto Club.