GL of Scotland Joins Britain's Council of Freemasonry To Fight Anti-Masonry

by Christopher Hodapp

The male-only Grand Lodge of Scotland has joined with the United Grand Lodge of England and England's female Freemasons in a cooperative organization to address urgent contemporary issues facing the fraternity at large. The Council of Freemasonry was established in 2024 as a cooperative organization and now represents most of the Masons, male and female, in Great Britain when it comes to certain public matters. The purpose is for Britain's Masons to publicly speak with one united voice on matters that concern them all.

In Monday's The Herald, it was reported:

The [Council of Freemasonry] includes the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE), the Order of Women Freemasons (OWF), the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons (HFAF), and now the Grand Lodge of Scotland.

Created in 2024, the council aims to strengthen collaboration between the organisations while promoting shared values including integrity, friendship, respect and service.

Its work focuses on public engagement, charitable projects, membership growth and challenging outdated perceptions of Freemasonry.

The inclusion of Scotland means the council now represents Freemasonry across the whole of Great Britain.

The article mistakenly calls the Council a 'governing' body, which it is not. It was formed two years ago, specifically in the face of anti-Masonic press coverage and a growing anti-Masonic sentiment within law enforcement. A recent rule passed by the London Metropolitan Police dramatically encroaches on the privacy of Masons on the force, requiring officers to publicly state their current or prior Masonic membership. Such rules were found to be discriminatory by the European Court of Human Rights almost 20 years ago, but English courts see no fault with them. 

The MET's new policy singles out the Freemasons as the sole organization in which officers must declare their membership. Worse, it classifies Masonic membership as a "declarable association, along with criminal convictions, those who have been dismissed from policing, and lawful professions such as private investigation or journalism."

Branding certain cops as Masons now opens officers up to completely unfounded allegations that they might somehow engage in funny business like cronyism, letting off 'brother' criminals or ignoring 'brother' officers' bad behavior, promoting Masonic officers over non-Masons, or looking the other way in cases strictly because they might sit in lodge together.

Despite decades of investigating the purported role of secret Masonic membership in high profile police cases, there has never been a proven incident tied to the Freemasons. Tons of allegations and millions of pounds expended hunting dirty Masons under the bedclothes, but never a shred of evidence. But that hasn't stopped other disgruntled cops and sensationalistic news outlets from falsely alleging all sorts of nefarious behavior among Masons in law enforcement ever since the 1980s.

The Council for Freemasonry announced its purpose in 2024 when it was formed:

The establishment of the Council for Freemasonry will formally establish an overarching forum for collaboration. In addition, the Council will bring together the community service ambitions of all three bodies, coordinate communication and engagement with other organisations, drive the membership growth ambitions, particularly for women Freemasons, and allocate resources and facilities for the general benefit of both male and female Freemasonry.

The Council will include the heads of each Grand Lodge, and each Grand Lodge will provide the President for a twelve-month period, chairing Council meetings in strict rotation. The President for the first two years will come from the OWF and HFAF, with UGLE covering the third year. 

The formation of the Council for Freemasonry in England and Wales marks a pivotal step towards enhancing cooperation, addressing misconceptions, and promoting the values of Freemasonry. This historic initiative reaffirms Freemasonry’s commitment to integrity, friendship, respect and service, while keeping community service and charitable giving at the absolute forefront of this historic organisation.

For those who might fret about such an announcement, none of this affects the regularity nor the recognition status of either the UGLE or the Grand lodge of Scotland as male-only Masonic fraternities. It should be remembered by U.S. Masons that Freemasonry in Britain and Europe , along with many other parts of the world, face challenges and biases of which we are blissfully unaware here. One of the primary jobs of the Council for Freemasonry is to counter public misinformation and press attacks against the fraternity by spreading the message that English Freemasonry is NOT just for men; that male and female Masonic organizations coexist, and are all alive and well and open for membership; and that none of these three grand lodges in Britain have any desire, intention, or reason for changing their practices or ideology of being a sanctuary from the outside world for their particular members, male or female.

UK's Female Masons Denounce New Police Masonic Declaration Rule

by Christopher Hodapp

England's two female grand lodges ( the Order of Women Freemasons and the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons ) have released their own response to the London Metropolitan Police's new requirement forcing their officers to declare their Masonic membership - past or present. Internal polling of officers has been greatly exaggerated and they are particularly calling B.S. over the MET's allegation that female police officers "are massively relieved at this decision because they feel they are disadvantaged by, sadly, a boy’s club.”

Their statement was forwarded this morning by the UGLE on their behalf:

Yesterday (Friday 12 December), we were made aware of comments made by Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, on LBC Radio. The interview can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/live/DiUDn7klubc?si=U8FkSp8YY2tQTRyW&t=1659

The following statement has been distributed to the media:

The United Grand Lodge of England, the Order of Women Freemasons and the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons note the comments made by the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police on Friday’s edition of Nick Ferrari’s LBC radio show. We feel compelled to respond to, and correct, several inaccurate and misleading representations of both the recent consultation held within the Metropolitan Police and Freemasonry in general.

In the interview, the Commissioner claimed that “two thirds of our officers think it ought to be declarable.” This contradicts the Met’s own statement, which claimed that “2,000 colleagues completed the survey.” Considering that the Metropolitan Police’s website states that there are 46,000 Met Police officers and staff, this statement is evidently false. It also highlights that the survey being used as the basis of the policy change was only completed by under 5% of officers and staff.

The Commissioner goes on to say: “We’ve looked at the intelligence picture today, and a combination of factors I’m satisfied that this is absolutely necessary.” At no point has this evidence been shared with us, to allow us to address concerns and if necessary, take action. We call on the Commissioner’s Office to release this intelligence as soon as practical, to enable us and the public to evaluate its credibility as a reason for this policy to be enacted.

Towards the end of the interview, the Commissioner states: “There are many, many women officers in the organisation particularly, who are massively relieved at this decision because they feel they are disadvantaged by, sadly, a boy’s club.” As proud female Freemasons, we in the Order of Women Freemasons and the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons take particular offense to this misleading and inaccurate statement. Women have been Freemasons now for over a century, longer than they have had the right to vote. We are proud of our history and heritage, and inaccurate representations such as this are disappointing.

As per our statement released on Thursday 11th December 2025, we continue to discuss our next steps on this matter and will be making a further announcement on our intentions in due course.

According to an earlier statement, the UGLE and the female grand lodges are considering taking legal action against the MET over the new policy. Ginning up institutional distrust about Freemasonry has become a self-fulfilling prophecy in English society and in the police department, in particular, all amplified by a slathering press. 

After more than 40 years of anti-Masonic paranoia swirling around UK police, there has never been any proof of Masonic police officers acting improperly as a group. None. Zero. Nada. Zip. Rumors, claims, conspiracy theories, pissy-bitch fables from disgruntled officers, all make sensational headlines—and there have been plenty of those printed by news organizations eager to sell more papers and achieve more upvote clicks. But there's never been any proof, and it's not been for lack of looking by countless special commissions and investigative teams.

(For a recap of the historical anti-Masonic claims, conspiracies and paranoia in English police departments over the decades, see https://freemasonsfordummies.blogspot.com/2025/09/london-police-league-is-hunting-masons.html )

Scotland Yard Is Hunting Masons Under The Bed... Again

by Christopher L. Hodapp

THIS STORY HAS BEEN REVISED TO SHOW THAT THE METROPOLITAN POLICE, AND NOT THE POLICE FEDERATION, IS RECOMMENDING THE MASONIC MEMBERSHIP DISCLOSURE POLICY. MY APOLOGIES FOR THE MIXUP.

As a kid, I always hated reruns. Turns out that I still don't like them as an adult.

London's Metropolitan Police (MET) have once again resurrected the snaggletoothed notion that all law enforcement officers be forced to officially declare their membership in the Freemasons. The hazy allegation is that Masonic police officers in the Metropolitan Police (MET) might possibly be engaging in favoritism, underhanded conduct, or downright criminal acts that all get swept under the carpet by fellow Brethren who hold their Masonic obligations higher than proper police conduct. Their reasoning is that, even though there's no proof of any such thing, some people and some officers MIGHT THINK there's something dodgy going on.

Scotland Yard is meeting with the Met's Police Federation and the United Grand Lodge of England, who are both protesting the rule.

According to an article in the BBC:

The Met does not currently record how many officers are Masons, and has never banned them from joining, but said concerns had been raised by officers and staff about the impact that membership of such a group could be having on "investigations, promotions and misconduct".

Existing examples of declarable associations include people with criminal convictions, those dismissed from policing, and lawful professions such as private investigation or journalism.

Officers and staff already have to declare any association with an individual or group that might compromise their integrity or damage the reputation of the force.

The move was recommended by the Daniel Morgan Independent Panel report, which looked at the force's handling of the unsolved murder of private detective Daniel Morgan.

The 37-year-old father of two was killed with an axe in the car park of the Golden Lion pub in Sydenham, south-east London, in 1987.

A string of inquiries over the decades unearthed allegations of corruption.

The 2021 report said police officers' membership of the Freemasons had been "a source of recurring suspicion and mistrust in the investigations".

Right. An investigation of an event from 39 years ago, from which an unknown number of those involved have died of old age.

This moth-eaten nonsense really dates back to 1984 in the wake of Stephen Knight's baseless, witless book of anti-Masonic fantasies, The Brotherhood: The Secret World of the Freemasons, in which he set forth his addled belief in a vast, secret network of secret Freemasons secretly secreted within police forces, courtrooms, law firms, and the prison system who secretly conspire to secretly commit crimes, hide their own transgressions, pardon criminals, and promote each other by giving each other secret signs, dodgy handshakes, and hopping about with rolled up trouser legs.

Or something like that. 

(And no, I'm not linking to it - go find it on your own, if you must, but buy a used copy so his heirs don't receive any royalties.)

Knight's absurd waste of pulp set in motion conspiracy theories alleging everything from a Masonic Jack the Ripper (as dramatized in the movies Murder By Decree and From Hell), to the sinking of the Titanic. There was an alleged police cover-up regarding a 1989 football stadium riot in Hillsborough (it took 27 years of investigating Hillsborough before several commissions finally gave up on finding ANY Masonic connection to the stampede and death of 96 people). There have also been countless unfounded claims over the decades that Masons have only promoted Brother Masons within the ranks of police departments all over the country. Time after time it's found simply that these cases are brought by disgruntled employees over being passed over for advancement. But more than four decades have gone by as these conspiracy theories have been marinated into the public consciousness by whole platoons of the press who keep floating these rumors, regardless of the facts.

Between 1997 and 2009, then-Home Secretary Jack Straw and his commission in the Home Office enacted a national law forcing cops and members of the judiciary to declare their membership in no other group besides the Freemasons, and wasted a fat wad of the taxpayer's cash and twelve years to arrive at the same conclusion across the whole country - there was no there there. No evidence of Masonic influences in police departments. Period. The law was only eliminated in the wake of a successful 2009 suit brought in the European Court of Human Rights by Italian Masons fighting a similar regulation. UGLE threatened a similar suit and the Home Office finally scrapped its registration requirement of Masons in police departments and the judiciary in 2010.

Again in 2016, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, reluctantly squashed a requirement that the city's Met officers had to publicly declare their Masonic membership, pointing out that such a register would be illegal. But I suppose since the Brexit vote occurred, the government has now decided they no longer have to follow the European Court of Human Rights rulings.

See, if only England could ditch those pesky protections of privacy and pass laws to specifically persecute people like Masonic police officers, lawyers, and judges over their private associations, everything would be just fine. Then once the Masons are purged, perhaps they could move on to getting rid of cops who are Manchester United fans, Fabians, bowling league members, cricketeers, and then get to the members of tea cozy collectors' clubs.

The MET's Police Federation acts similar to a police union or professionals' association. Back in 2018, the then-head of the Police Federation, Steve White, resigned from office just before he was about to be handed the biscuit in a no-confidence vote from his members. On his way out the door, he alleged that he had been thwarted from making serious reforms to the Federation over his three-year term by some unspecified cabal of secret Masonic police officers, even though he had no idea how many of his officers were actually members of the fraternity, who they might be, how influential (or ineffectual) they really were, or whether Masons had actually done anything at all to block his plans. Imagine that.

Turns out that his fellow officers just plain didn't like the guy or his proposed changes. That had nothing to do with the Freemasons.

The problem has ALWAYS been that anti-Masonic prejudices and open hatreds are so widespread in the UK and Europe. Once employees of ANY profession are required to openly declare their Masonic membership, they are opening themselves up to retribution and risking their jobs. Anti-Masons will use their membership as an excuse to allege misconduct of all kinds. Criminals will accuse Masonic cops of no end of imaginary conspiracies. Non-Masonic officers will accuse Masonic supervisors of favoritism and prejudice, just like Steve White did when he resigned in 2018.

The ONLY reason the public has this toxic perception in the first place is because certain members of the press and opportunistic politicians have spent more than 40 years beating this same meritless, one-note drum over and over. Look at this one from 2011. Or this one from 2018. 

Today, to accompany this story, The Spectator editorialist Melanie McDonagh posted a piece of offal, There's Something Vulgar About the Freemasons, that's so loaded with falsehoods and her own personal prejudices that a responsible editor should have handed it back to her to try again. It seems Ms. McDonagh just doesn't like the IDEA of the Masons, as a Catholic and a woman (who doesn't even know that there are thousands of female Masons in England). She doesn't like the Masons; she doesn't like the decor of UGLE's Great Queen Street headquarters, Freemasons Hall (!); she thinks it's a given that "half the coppers in London are Freemasons"; and she admits she doesn't even know if her own beliefs are true or not. 

The press contradictorily brands Freemasons, on the one hand, as a doddering, dwindling collection of sad, old white men engaging in silly rituals behind closed doors of crumbling buildings, who have no reason to exist in a modern world. But, in the same breath, they treat Freemasons as an all-powerful secret society that pervades professions like the police departments and the judiciary, exchanging secret semaphore signals with criminals or accomplices to get each other promotions or to escape the strong arm of justice they so richly deserve.

So which is it—stupid dinosaurs on our collective death bed, or all-powerful manipulators who surreptitiously pick the winners and losers? The anti-Masons can't have it both ways, but they sure do huff and puff and keep trying to do just that.

Thankfully, we haven't had to deal with this nonsense in the U.S. ever, really. Our worst anti-Masonic period was 200 years ago, and while we've had occasional bouts with it since then, we haven't been victimized by the press with the wholesale level our English Brethren have dealt with since the 1980s. This is why former Grand Secretary David Staples and the UGLE created the #EnoughIsEnough campaign several years ago to combat anti-Masonic press allegations and prejudices. And why the all-male UGLE teamed up with the two English female grand lodges and the Grand lodge of Scotland to create the Council For Freemasonry last year, a cooperative organization that specifically responds to these kinds of anti-Masonic stories as a rapid-response team.

The United Grand Lodge of England will be meeting with MET officials on Tuesday. Hopefully, this most recent episode will get defused as they have in the past. But given the current political climate in the UK, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour government trying to clamp down on free speech, free association, and other vital tenets of Western governance, nothing is certain.

Male and Female Grand Lodges Counter Misinformation With New 'Council for Freemasonry in England and Wales'

by Christopher Hodapp

If you've been reading Freemasonry Today, the official magazine of the United Grand Lodge of England, over the last couple of years, you've doubtless noticed an increasing number of articles highlighting female Freemasonry and reporting on cooperative actions between the male-only UGLE, female Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons (HFAF), and the the Order of Women Freemasons (OWF). Back when the UGLE celebrated its 300th anniversary of the founding of the first grand lodge in 2018, the female grand masters from both the OWF and the HFAF were invited to the festivities. In fact, for quite some time, UGLE has stated that they consider both organizations to be in all ways "regular" Freemasons, apart from admitting women as members. In recent years, they have cooperated in joint public outreach programs, such as UGLE's Universities Scheme, which brings Freemasonry's message and opportunities to university campuses and encourages students to join a nearby Masonic lodge.

A couple of weeks ago, the UGLE, the OWF and the HFAF announced their most public cooperative partnership yet: the formation of a new Council for Freemasonry in England and Wales, a joint commission made up of representatives of the three English grand lodges specifically created to present a united voice for Freemasonry in the United Kingdom.

In a statement released online, the Council explained its formation and purpose:

This new Council aims to enhance further existing and longstanding collaboration and promote the fundamental principles of Freemasonry, including merit, tolerance, diversity, and inclusion, between the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE), the Order of Women Freemasons (OWF), and the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons (HFAF).

Even in 2024 Freemasonry continues to face various unfounded criticisms and inaccurate misconceptions, often stemming from deep-rooted prejudices, or preconceived falsehoods. Contrary to the erroneous claim that Freemasonry is exclusively male, women’s Freemasonry has been an integral part of Freemasonry in the UK for over a century. While Freemasonry is practised in single-sex Lodges, this is no different from many other activities, including most sports as well as many other community groups.

The establishment of the Council for Freemasonry will formally establish an overarching forum for collaboration. In addition, the Council will bring together the community service ambitions of all three bodies, coordinate communication and engagement with other organisations, drive the membership growth ambitions, particularly for women Freemasons, and allocate resources and facilities for the general benefit of both male and female Freemasonry.

The Council will include the heads of each Grand Lodge, and each Grand Lodge will provide the President for a twelve-month period, chairing Council meetings in strict rotation. The President for the first two years will come from the OWF and HFAF, with UGLE covering the third year.

The formation of the Council for Freemasonry in England and Wales marks a pivotal step towards enhancing cooperation, addressing misconceptions, and promoting the values of Freemasonry. This historic initiative reaffirms Freemasonry’s commitment to integrity, friendship, respect and service, while keeping community service and charitable giving at the absolute forefront of this historic organisation.

Almost immediately, the new Council got a chance to make its first big public noise. It all started over the news of a longtime male-only institution. 

In May, London's venerable Garrick Club (see these photos from their website) voted to admit women to full membership after almost two centuries of being exclusively for men. I guess Old Blighty is now saved after this brave and bold move. 

You'd have thought the good news just came in from Waterloo. It was the biggest victory since Old Boney got sent packing. Naturally, the UK press could scarcely contain itself.

The Garrick was originally founded in 1831 as a gentleman's club for actors, theatrical directors, and playwrights, along with deep-pocketed patrons of the arts—as its bylaws stated, for those of "gentlemanly accomplishment and scholarship." The club is named for David Garrick, considered to be the greatest actor of all time, or at least in the 18th century when he lived. Fans of Winnie the Pooh stories may have heard of the Garrick; upon his death, author A.A. Milne left the rights and royalties from the Pooh stories to the club in perpetuity. 

As a big, odious clot of bellyachers, the press in the UK despises same-sex clubs of men (Not clubs of women, of course. Same-sex clubs for men are branded as secret enclaves of deal-making, back-patting, and good-ol-toffey-nosed job networking, while same-sex clubs for women are to be celebrated as 'bold, brave, groundbreaking, and long-overdue.') So, whaddya think the UK press did after beating their rheumatic chests in victory over toppling another venerable bastion of male-only institutions? Of course, they took it as an opportunity to once again swipe at the Freemasons for not following suit and 'getting on the right side of history.' 

Private English mens' clubs were all the rage in the 19th century, and nobody in their right minds wanted to eat or socialize with actors anyhow back in the 1830s, so it made sense for them to establish a club of their own. The clubs flourished throughout the 20th century, as any faithful reader of P.G. Wodehouse novels* can attest, but private anythings for men have come under attack off and on for the last 50 years or so throughout Western society, especially in Britain. The Garrick still has plenty of actors and rock stars on its membership rolls, but it's also got its share of the upper icing-covered layer of the society cheesecake these days: not just actors, but lawyers, judges, high-profile businessmen, government ministers and policy advisors, even King Charles III himself. An attempt was made by some members back in 2010 to admit females as full members, but the existing membership failed to make the change at that time. A handful of members resigned in protest over the issue, making a big public show of it on their way out the door, but the Garrick held fast for another 14 years.

Earlier this year, the Guardian decided to stir the pot again and publicly published a list of the current Garrick members in an effort to force another vote on admitting women. As has been done in the past, the goal was to paint male membership in private clubs as a shameful, despicable fetish that shouldn't be permitted in a progressive society. Consequently, the club's reputation took a public beating over it, with the usual claims that these big-deal, establishment male movers and shakers in important parts of government and other institutions meet in their private clubs to make deals, craft legislation, scratch each others' needy backs, hire each other, and otherwise screw over whatever the English version is of smelly Walmart people and the Deplorables. And, by Zeus' thunder! the laydeez deserved to join their ranks so they could do it too, dammit! 

So, to stab into the soft underbelly of this story, the Guardian's exposure of the members fulfilled its purpose: a bare majority of 51% of the members of the Garrick finally voted in May to open the doors to the ladies, and immediately named Dame Judy Densch and Sian Phillips as full members. 

I suppose the Empire is saved now.

So what does this have to do with Freemasonry?

After the story broke reporting the Garrick's admission of women, the longtime journalist and English peer Baroness Patience Wheatcroft (not a made-up name), posted a column on the New European site entitled, Forget About the Garrick, What About the Freemasons? She seemed to have no problem with the Garrick excluding women because it's just an old geezer home for unemployed, has-been actors, and she even spent a few paragraphs declaring such clubs to be just fine and harmless because they're really unimportant to powerful people:

Put aside the fact that the rules ban business talk, a stricture that admittedly might be hard to implement, the [Garrick's] ornate Covent Garden building is not the beating heart of Britain. It is a haven for elderly thespians and those who wish to rub shoulders with them. Yes, that includes a gaggle of Conservative politicians but Michael Gove would probably be more interested in collecting the autograph of Brian Cox or Hugh Bonneville than trying to discuss matters of state. Jacob Rees-Mogg, should he ever deign to sit at the communal long table, would surely be too occupied playing to the crowd to say anything of import. . .

The Cabinet Secretary and the head of MI6 have stressful jobs and, like Pooh, probably enjoy a bit of relaxation and some favourite food. As they, along with a gaggle of judges, rushed for the club exit in the face of the Guardian campaign, they weren’t trying to ensure that women have equal access to power, merely that their own careers would not be blighted by allegations of unfair discrimination. Their willingness to drop their Garrick membership shows how little they value it – these people know where power really resides nowadays: in Silicon Valley, the trading desks of Goldman Sachs, and the offices of Blackrock.

However, the Baroness continues, as for those flaming Masons:

And right next door to the place where the Garrick’s historic vote was taken early this month – the Connaught Rooms – is the imposing Freemasons’ Hall. That’s home to the United Grand Lodge of England, an organisation which far pre-dates the Garrick and which remains firmly closed to women.

If the Guardian really wanted to pursue the principle of equality, then the mysterious power and influence of Freemasonry could be worth its attention. This international movement lists its principles as “Integrity, Friendship, Respect and Service”, all qualities that might be thought to have appeal to those of every gender and none. Undoubtedly, the movement does charitable works but there are some who suspect that its charity most decidedly begins at home.

Elaborating on its aim of fostering friendship, the Grand Lodge literature says: “All members share a sense of togetherness that strengthens their ability to succeed and grow”. Would it be at all surprising if that success at work was given a helpful nudge, perhaps a promotion, by a fellow mason in the same company?

And, yes, lest you think it was somehow left out of the piece, farther down in her editorial, the baroness managed to work in the universal English press anti-Masonic mark of snark: a reference to 'rolled-up trouser legs' (although, the term 'dodgy handshakes' was somehow left out).

Funny. This 'New European' sounds remarkably like the 'Old European' to my tin ear...

But this time, when the press began to crank out "the Garrick now admits wimmin, so wut in God's holy teeth is wrong with those bloody Masons?" columns, instead of spreading out and laying prostrate for another public flaying by the rent-seeking, activist presstitutes pounding on their tripe-writers, the brand new Council for Freemasonry immediately answered. 

On May 17th, they issued the following statement:

United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE), The Order of Women Freemasons (OWF) and the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons (Freemasonry for Women) are united in our surprise and unease at an article published in The New European by Patience Wheatcroft. The article contains a number of significant inaccuracies and we feel obliged to respond in order to provide Baroness Wheatcroft, and her readers, with an accurate representation of the truth.

Beginning with the numerous claims about Freemasonry’s entry requirements, we are delighted that the author has visited the UGLE website and reflected on the organisation’s core values of Integrity, Friendship, Respect and Service. While she was there, it is a shame, however, that Baroness Wheatcroft did not manage to locate the section of our website dedicated to Women Freemasons, who have been proudly meeting in this country for over 100 years. Indeed, even more simply, a cursory Google search would have revealed the websites of the two female Grand Lodges that meet in the United Kingdom, as well as their numerous social media channels. The links for all three of our websites can be found in the footer of this statement and we encourage you to peruse them at your leisure.

Secondly, on the points raised about our charitable commitments, we are proud of the impact that we, as Freemasons, have within the community. We are pleased that in 2020, during the dark and uncertain early stages of the pandemic, Freemasons contributed over £51.1 million to deserving causes. This includes not only financial contributions but also the dedication of over 18.5 million hours annually to volunteer work. In 2021, as the societal impacts of the pandemic continued to take hold, UGLE allocated over £4.7 million through specific relief programs, focusing on community support, food aid, domestic abuse, homelessness, and mental health.

Thirdly, in relation to the points made about members, we celebrate the diversity of our membership. Freemasons have been part of a unique and enduring social organisation for over 300 years, with no political or religious affiliations. Our diverse memberships include individuals of various ages, races, religions, cultures, and backgrounds. This is something that we wholeheartedly celebrate.

In reference to Baroness Wheatcroft’s remarks about customs within Freemasonry, we are surprised that such timeless traditions appear unfamiliar to a sitting Member of the House of Lords, where ancient practices linking the existing body to its predecessors are rightly celebrated. In the same way, our traditions come from historical links to medieval stonemasons and more information can be found about this on our websites and social media channels.

Finally, we are proud to be Freemasons. Articles such as the one referenced above only serve to spread misinformation and misconceptions and we are determined to not only stand up for our members, those of all genders and those of none, but to present, once and for all, the truth about Freemasonry.

Our doors remain firmly open.

United Grand Lodge of England, Order of Women Freemasons & the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons (Freemasonry for Women)

One of the primary jobs of the new Council for Freemasonry is to counter public misinformation and press attacks against the fraternity by spreading the message that English Freemasonry is NOT just for men; that male and female Masonic organizations coexist, and are all alive and well and open for membership; and that none of these three grand lodges in Britain have any desire, intention, or reason for changing their practices or ideology of being a sanctuary from the outside world for their particular members, male or female.

So, if Baroness Wheatcroft finds herself somehow lacking in enough titles, memberships and benefits of her lofty station in life, she's certainly free to apply to the OWF or HFAF. After all, she's got as much chance of getting in as anyone else, provided she can pass an investigation and ball-and-cube vote. . .

*Just as an aside for Wodehouse fans, not only was P.G. himself a member of the Garrick (which doubtless provided him with endless fodder for his fictional Drones Club stories), but so are both actors Stephen Frye and Hugh Laurie, who played Jeeves & Wooster in what are the very best filmed versions of those stories ever made. 

Small world. Wouldn't want to paint it...