A politician who pushed for the introduction of “gender neutral” toilets shortly after his election has been charged with nine counts of sexual touching of a child.
David Smith successfully petitioned the Mayor of Middlesborough to trial gender neutral toilets at Middlesbrough Council shortly after his election to the local authority in Teeside, Yorkshire, as a politician representing the Conservative Party, according to the BBC.
Councillor Smith resigned from the notionally right-leaning party — described as “not really conservative” by Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage in a recent interview with Breitbart News — with “immediate effect in light of the allegations” against him.
He added that he “completely reject[s]” the “spurious allegations”, however, claiming that he was only “removing myself from the party [to] ensure I can focus all my efforts on fighting to clear my name.”
Nevertheless, reports suggest he intends to remain on the council — allowing him to continue receiving a reported £6,378 in basic allowance — for the time being.
Smith said he had “worked hard to ensure I serve the people of Coulby Newham” — the ward to which he was elected only around two months ago — “to the best of my ability.”
The 30-year-old claimed “tackling the issue of pot holes”, “ordering bollards to be installed”, and “being a very proud advocate of the local LGBTQ community” as career highlights.
“This is who I am as a person and a community activist,” he said, insisting that “The allegations made against my character are nothing more than damaging lies and moving forward, I will seek to prove this is the case in a court of law.”
Smith was previously the subject of controversy when it emerged that he had suggested the country has issues with “rotten pond life families that should be sterilised and washed” while posting on an association football forum under the moniker “Smoggy89”.
A spokesman for Cleveland Police confirmed that Smith it “due to appear at Teesside Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 7 August.”
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