MPs take up the case of Beth Alexander’s custody battle

MPs have called on fellow politicians to take up the case of a London mother fighting for custody of her two sons, writes Dean Joseph, after her final appeal was denied by Austria’s highest court.

Politicians raised the plight of Beth Alexander in an Adjournment Debate in Westminster on Tuesday, after the Supreme Court in Vienna dealt another blow to her three-year fight by recently turning down her latest attempt to gain custody of her four-year-old twin boys. She currently only has the right to see the youngsters for a few hours each week.

Now lawmakers led by Alexander’s MP Graham Stringer and Hendon representative Matthew Offord are asking other politicians to look into what Offord described as “a serious miscarriage of justice”.

He added that the court ruling was an “unusual decision to deprive a mother of custody of her two young children”.

London-born Beth lost custody of her boys when they were two, after psychological reports following her divorce from their Austrian father, whom she met in London. Supporters have said that subsequent psychological reports contradicted the original.

The case has attracted support from British Jews, and members of Alexander’s family have met Austrian officials – including the ambassador – to convey their concerns about the legal process.

“Austria is a member of both the EU and European Convention on Human Rights,” said Offord. “It must hold its judiciary up to a certain standard.”