Guest - until I know who you are please desist from calling me 'Darling' and, even then, I don't appreciate it as a form of address.

I'm quite aware of the rules that allow organizations and private clubs to allow restricted membership.

"The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 came into force on 30th April 2007.
By virtue of S.16 of the Regulations it is unlawful for an Association (which includes a club provided it has 25 or more members and admission to membership is regulated by its constitution and is conducted so that the members do not constitute a section of the public) to discriminate against a non-member and/or a member due to his/her sexual orientation.

Discrimination laws are to be extended to private members club under the Bill insofar as they may not discriminate, harass or victimise a member, an associate member or guest due to a protected characteristic.
The characteristics that are protected by the Bill are: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

The Bill does however recognise that there are benefits to clubs with 'shared characteristics' and therefore same sex clubs, clubs for people of a particular religion, etc, will still be allowed where the main purpose of the club is to bring together people who share a particular characteristic (e.g. disabled sailing); and clubs will be able to impose the same restrictions on associate members and guests. 'All male' clubs or 'all female' clubs will be permitted but clubs will not be able to operate a mixed gender membership (i.e. male and female) and yet bar female members from sailing on certain days, while allowing male members to sail whenever they like."

It is quite apparent that these rules were not meant to apply to political parties


I have some experience of what it means as an 'ordinary person' to stand against a line of police and horses to block the way for the BNP and their various predecessors and the role of the police in maintaining public order

Your comment on the 'lesson' to be learned from the 30s is one that has been repeated by others; we do well to remember -

"That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons of history."
Aldous Huxley