Stevenage fathers’ rights activist sets sights on MP and borough council jobs after Boris Johnson stunt
New Fathers 4 Justice activist Bobby Smith took his campaign to the door of London mayor Boris Johnson. - Credit: Archant
A fathers’ rights activist who caused a security breach at Buckingham Palace in November is planning to stand for election as an MP or borough councillor.
Fathers 4 Justice activist Bobby Smith scaled the roof of Chris Grayling's home, leader of the House of Commons, in his fight for equal rights. - Credit: Archant
Bobby Smith of Anderson Road, Stevenage has been campaigning for a change to family law, claiming he has been treated unfairly by the courts and denied proper access to his two daughters since 2010.
His latest stunt was to hold a protest outside London mayor Boris Johnson’s home in March. At the time, the New Fathers 4 Justice activist said: “Boris is in, but he’s being a bit shy. I’ve posted something for him to read. I’ll just keep coming back until he’s ready to talk. He’ll give in before I do.”
Bobby, 34, is planning to stand for election in the hope of becoming either an MP or a councillor in a bid to change the British justice system.
He’s climbed onto the roofs of many public buildings – including using a ladder to climb onto the roof of Buckingham Palace and scaling the home of House of Commons leader Chris Grayling – in a bid to get his voice heard.
Now he plans to stand for election to Stevenage Borough Council in May, as well as for an MP in a by-election for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough seat triggered by the death of the constituency MP.
He says his manifesto will outline three main objectives – to give equal rights to fathers in divorce and separation proceedings, to give grandparents a legal standing, and to reform the family courts.
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Bobby, who has adopted Muppet Elmo as his mascot because of a pet name he has for his children, stood against Prime Minister David Cameron at the the general election last year.
He said: “It’s no good sitting at home getting depressed and getting upset at how much you miss your kids. You need to stand up and not accept what has happened.There’s no equality for fathers in family law. I want nothing less than a legal presumption of equal contact for a child with their parents if they split up.”
