In what has been hailed as a victory for free speech and pro-life activism, Britain’s Home Secretary Suella Braverman has announced that silent prayer near abortion providers is not a crime.

Ms Braverman has written to every police force in the UK to say that “silent prayer, within itself, is not unlawful”.

In the past 12 months, at least 3 people in Britain were arrested for what critics described as “thought crimes” – praying silently at facilities where abortions were performed.

The Home Secretary also reminded police that “holding lawful opinions, even if those opinions may offend others, is not a criminal offence”.

Isabel Vaughan-Spruce – the pro-life advocate whose arrest for “praying in my head” went viral, racking up millions of views worldwide – welcomed the intervention by Ms Braverman.

She told the Catholic Herald: “It is not for the Government to determine my beliefs on abortion, my beliefs that women deserve better support, nor police the faith that I hold in my own mind.