Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, a prominent Christian in the UK government, pushed back against US Vice President JD Vance’s criticism of the UK government regarding religious freedom, following the conviction of a former serviceman who silently prayed outside an abortion clinic.
During a speech at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, Vance argued that Europe was drifting away from democratic values, citing the case of Adam Smith-Connor, a 51-year-old who was convicted last year for violating a public space protection order outside an abortion clinic in Bournemouth in November 2022.
On the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, Reynolds rejected Vance’s claims, emphasising that access to health services was a fundamental British value.
On the specific example he gave, let’s be clear, we don’t have blasphemy laws in the UK. That’s the right thing. I say that, as a Christian: no one is arrested for what they are praying about.
Despite disagreeing with Vance’s characterisation, Reynolds echoed his statement that the two countries could “disagree on some of this stuff and still be a key part of a relationship of allies and friends.”
Reynolds also rejected Vance’s assertion that the greatest challenge for Europe remained “the threat from within.”
I would disagree on that.
