Report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit

This report provides the Committee with the details of a petition to add Public Space Protection Orders around all abortion-providing clinics.  It also outlines the procedure for the Committee to debate this petition in accordance with the Council’s Petitions Scheme.

The Committee considered the report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit which provided details of a petition to add Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) around all abortion-providing clinics.  The report also outlined the procedure for the Committee to debate the petition in accordance with the Council’s Petitions Scheme.

The Committee welcomed Eabha Doherty from Sister Supporter Manchester who outlined the reasons for submitting the petition.  She reported that so far two other local authorities – Ealing Council and Richmond Council – had introduced PSPOs around abortion-providing clinics in their areas.  She emphasised that women should be able to access health care facilities to which they were legally entitled without harassment or intimidation and while retaining their anonymity.  She informed Members that her organisation had been collecting evidence of harassment of service users and staff around the Marie Stopes Clinic in Fallowfield for 18 months and that the Marie Stopes Clinic had also gathered evidence.  She outlined some of the tactics used by the protesters, including carrying placards showing graphic images, approaching and filming women trying to access the clinic and spreading unfounded claims about the health effects of having an abortion.  She advised that, as well as having a traumatic effect on women using the clinic, this behaviour also impacted on local residents who had been living with this problem for many years.  She reported that the women harassed often did not report the harassment to the police, due to feelings of shame, and stated that the protesters were targeting vulnerable women with the aim of stopping them from going ahead with their own choice.

The Strategic Director (Neighbourhoods) was then invited to respond to the issues raised.  She outlined the purpose of PSPOs and the Home Office guidance, highlighting that they had to be used responsibly and proportionately.  She acknowledged the issues that Ms Doherty had raised and reported that mediation had been tried to resolve this issue but that this had not been successful.  She reported that the Council now had significant evidence of the issues around abortion-providing clinics, including evidence provided by the petition organisers.  She outlined the steps involved in making PSPOs, informing Members that officers were engaging with the Council’s Legal Service with a view to undertaking a consultation on this issue. 

The Statutory Deputy Leader expressed her support for women to be able to access health care to which they were legally entitled without fear of harassment.  She drew Members’ attention to the motion that the Council had passed in January 2018 which, she advised, demonstrated the Council’s support for this; however, she reported that there were some challenges relating to the implementation of PSPOs around clinics.  She reported that the Council was committed to addressing these challenges and outlined what the Council had done so far, including speaking to groups on both sides, as well as local residents and clinic staff.  She informed Members that the Council was in contact with Ealing Council, which had already introduced buffer zones around abortion-providing clinics in its area and which was now facing a legal challenge.  She reported that this would be considered by the Court of Appeal in about a month’s time and that the outcome would have implications for the course of action that Manchester City Council would take.  She reported that evidence was being gathered and legal advice was being sought and that, in the meantime, the Council was liaising with the police to ensure that, where the behaviour of protesters breached existing laws, action was taken now.  She also suggested that Members should be campaigning to extend the right to attend abortion-providing clinics without harassment to all women across the United Kingdom.

Some of the key points that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

• Expressions of support for the right of women to access medical care without harassment and for necessary steps to be taken to ensure this;
• That Members wanted this work to progress as quickly as possible, while ensuring that it was legally sound, and to request that the Committee be updated on progress and any issues that arose so that this could be scrutinised;
• To suggest Members could visit the location of the Marie Stopes Clinic to see the issues for themselves;
• To ask what evidence was needed to make a PSPO;
• How a PSPO would be enforced; and
• Whether PSPOs were in place for a particular period of time.

The Community Safety Lead reported that evidence would be required of behaviour which was having or was likely to have a detrimental effect on the quality of life of those in the locality, that it was persistent or continuing in nature and that it was unreasonable.  She informed Members that PSPOs could be enforced by police officers, police community support officers or council officers.  She advised the Committee that PSPOs could be put in place for up to 3 years and would then be reviewed and extended if necessary.

Decisions

1.            To support the petition and to ask the decision-maker to work with the petition organisers and others to progress this within a reasonable timescale.

2.            To receive a progress report at a future meeting.

3.            To express the Committee’s support for the campaign to extend the right to attend abortion-providing clinics without harassment to all women across the United Kingdom.

[Councillor Evans and Councillor Grimshaw declared a prejudicial interest as Members of the Licensing and Appeals Committee and withdrew from the room for this item.]