New UK Bill Aims to Shield Places of Worship from Disruptive Protests

In a bid to protect places of worship from disruptive protests, the British government is moving ahead with proposed amendments to a policing bill currently under parliamentary review. The measure would empower police in England and Wales to control the route and timing of protests near places of worship, following a similar initiative by Australian lawmakers earlier this year.

Speaking at the annual dinner of the Community Security Trust—a Jewish security organization—the U.K. Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, emphasized that the new provision is primarily aimed at curbing protests outside synagogues. “The right to protest must not undermine a person’s right to worship. And everybody has a right to live in freedom from fear,” Cooper stated, addressing a Jewish group concerned by the frequent pro-Palestinian rallies held during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

The proposal comes after a high-profile incident in January, when organizers of a planned pro-Palestinian protest in London defied police orders to alter their route away from a synagogue on a Saturday. Cooper expressed strong support for recent actions by the Metropolitan Police to divert protest routes from synagogues on Shabbat, acknowledging the persistent challenges faced by the community.

In addition to the protest control measure, another amendment to the policing bill seeks to protect London’s upcoming Holocaust memorial by adding it to a list of monuments shielded from vandalism, such as climbing or defacement.

Similar restrictions have been implemented in New South Wales, Australia, where recent legislation has criminalized protests near places of worship. A dramatic incident in Melbourne saw a synagogue ordered to evacuate due to concerns over a nearby pro-Palestinian demonstration, a decision made against a backdrop of a significant increase in antisemitic incidents since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war.

While some critics in Australia, including Sydney’s Lord Mayor Clover Moore, have warned that such measures could infringe on free speech rights, Jewish groups in England have expressed cautious optimism. The Jewish Leadership Council, representing numerous Jewish organizations, issued a statement noting that disruptive protests on Shabbat have long troubled Central London synagogues and welcomed the prospect of re-establishing a balance between protest rights and the community’s right to worship without fear.

As the bill progresses through Parliament, both supporters and critics will be closely monitoring the details of the forthcoming amendments, which promise to reshape how public demonstrations are managed around places of worship across the U.K.

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