SERIOUS concerns about the freedom to protest in Scotland have been raised by lawyers and others in the public sphere after Holyrood announced plans which could ban activists from gathering at the Scottish Parliament. 

In a letter to the Home Office, presiding officer Alison Johnstone has asked for the Edinburgh building and the surrounding area to be designated as a protected site in the interests of national security. 

At present, the police have limited powers to intervene if no substantive offence takes place, such as protesters making a prolonged noise outside the entrances.