Members of the Garrick Club in London’s West End have voted to allow women to join the institution.
The all-male private club, founded in 1831, had come under pressure to admit female members.
On Tuesday, members voted to allow women to join after reconsidering the legal language surrounding membership.
Civil service chief Simon Case and MI6 chief Richard Moore recently resigned from the club after its membership list was revealed.
The vote passed, with nearly 60% in favor. The Garrick has been contacted for comment.
The vote confirming the resolution required a 50% majority, while previous votes on the issue of female membership had required a two-thirds majority.
Analysis of the club’s rules by senior judges concluded that nothing in Garrick’s constitution prevented women from being allowed to join, as the 1925 Property Act states that in legal documents the word “he” must also be read to mean “she”. .
Published by the Guardian newspaper, the closely guarded list of members included the king, judges, lawyers, peers, ministers and other MPs, as well as academics, actors, rock stars and senior journalists .
Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden and Leveling Secretary Michael Gove were both revealed as members, along with former ministers including Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, Kwasi Kwarteng and Robert Buckland.
BBC broadcasters John Simpson and Melvyn Bragg were also revealed to be members.
Image source, Getty Images
Speaking about his time as a member of the club, former culture minister Lord Vaizey told the Today program “It was really quite backward – women couldn’t even go up the stairs, they couldn’t dine in the main dining room.
“Fortunately, all that has changed a long time ago.”
“Not a secret cabal”
He added that he did not “think the Garrick is a secret cabal of men who quietly run a country” but “it’s just a friendly place where people go for lunch and dinner, and that goes for the women than for men. .
The Guardian also reported that pro-women members planned to nominate a shortlist of seven women to join the club, including actress Juliet Stevenson.
She told Today a club that “for hundreds of years (has been) a club largely dedicated to the theater community and then the artistic community…must by definition be open to all.”
“I’m not so interested in wine and dining, but I’m really interested in exchanging ideas and challenging each other,” she said.
“If that’s a place where that can take place, I would definitely be interested.”
News Source : www.bbc.com
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