Protect the Right to Peaceful Protest Repeal the Public Order Act Amendments
To: The UK Government and Members of Parliament
Subject: Protect the Right to Peaceful Protest Repeal the Public Order Act Amendments
Today, the right to peaceful protest in the United Kingdom faces a dangerous new restriction.
Recent amendments to the Public Order Act 2023 now classify animal testing and life sciences facilities as key national infrastructure.
This means that peaceful protest activity judged to interfere with the operation of these sites can carry criminal penalties of up to 12 months in prison, unlimited fines, or both.
Animal testing facilities are not roads, railways, or energy networks.
They are private or commercial research sites engaged in practices that many members of the public reasonably and ethically oppose.
Expanding the definition of key national infrastructure to shield these facilities from protest represents a profound and disproportionate extension of state power.
Peaceful dissent is not a threat to national security.
It is a cornerstone of democracy.
For generations, citizens in the UK have peacefully protested injustice from environmental harm to animal cruelty to workers’ rights without being treated as criminals. These new regulations risk criminalising ordinary people for standing outside a facility with a placard or gathering to bear witness.
Existing laws already give police extensive powers to manage protests where genuine disruption or harm occurs. There has been no clear evidence that further criminal sanctions were necessary.
This change creates a chilling effect on free expression and public accountability, while protecting controversial industries from scrutiny.
That is not how democracy should function.
The Lords Let It Through. Here’s What Happens Next.
The House of Lords approved new regulations expanding the scope of the Public Order Act 2023.
Despite powerful speeches, public pressure, and thousands of people contacting peers to defend the right to peaceful protest, the amendment passed.
It is a disappointing moment. But it is not the end of public opposition.
What changed
The Government has extended the definition of key national infrastructure to include animal testing and life sciences facilities.
Until now, that label applied to things like roads, rail networks, and energy systems services essential to keeping the country functioning.
These new rules stretch that definition to cover private and commercial research sites.
As a result, protest activity that is judged to interfere with the use or operation of these facilities may now carry criminal penalties, including prison sentences or substantial fines.
In simple terms: peaceful protest outside certain sites could now be treated as a criminal offence.
Why this matters
This isn’t about violent activity or genuine threats. Those are already illegal.
This is about peaceful dissent.
It is about standing outside with a placard.
It is about bearing witness.
It is about asking questions of powerful industries.
For decades, animal welfare progress has depended on exactly this kind of peaceful civic action.
If protest can be reframed as interference, then ordinary people risk being treated like criminals simply for speaking up.
That should concern everyone not just animal advocates.
Because once protest rights shrink in one area, they rarely stop there.
Today it is animal testing.
Tomorrow it could be environmental protection, housing, workers’ rights, or community campaigns.
This is bigger than one issue.
It is about whether dissent still has space in a democracy.
Were these powers necessary?
Police already have extensive legal tools to manage demonstrations where there is genuine harm or obstruction.
There has been little clear evidence that those powers were insufficient.
Many civil liberties and animal protection groups have warned that these changes are disproportionate and risk creating a chilling effect where people stay silent out of fear rather than speak up peacefully.
That is not healthy for democracy.
What happens now
The regulations have passed Parliament and will take effect.
Some organisations are exploring legal and political routes to challenge or review these changes.
As a small grassroots animal welfare organisation, our role is different.
We focus on raising awareness, informing our community, and making sure these decisions do not go unnoticed or unquestioned.
Because silence helps no one.
What we’re doing
We are launching a new public campaign and petition calling on the Government to:
• repeal these amendments
• protect the right to peaceful protest
• ensure protest laws remain proportionate and evidence-based
• safeguard democratic freedoms
We may be a rescue organisation, but we know this much:
Animal welfare has always relied on people being free to speak out.
If compassion becomes a crime, progress becomes impossible.
