The week in straplines…

“[T]he first modern ABC to meet a Pope wasn’t Michael Ramsey. To adapt a well-known saying, Geoffrey Fisher did some of the things that Michael Ramsey did, earlier and in gaiters“: Andrew Connell.

“One person’s filibuster is another’s detailed scrutiny of sloppy and hastily assembled legislation”: Prof. Mark Taubert.

Abortion buffer zones in Scotland

There have been various reports that the case against Rose Docherty, who was arrested and charged under the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Act 2024 after holding up a placard outside Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital saying “Coercion is a crime, here to talk, only if you want”, has been dropped.  According to various  media reports, Sheriff Reid ruled that the prosecution had “failed to disclose an offence known to the law of Scotland” because Crown Office had not led any evidence that she had influenced anyone seeking abortion services on the day in question. Continue reading →