Presidents Club dinner: Head of Charity Commission 'horrified' by groping claims as 50,000 back calls for more protection from workplace harassment

The event took place at Mayfair's Dorchester Hotel, which has a 'zero-tolerance' policy on harassment
Getty Images
Fiona Simpson25 January 2018

The head of the Charity Commission has said she is “horrified” by reports of groping and sexual harassment at the mens-only Presidents Club gala and has demanded an urgent meeting with trustees.

Helen Stephenson insisted the commission “has made clear that we consider (the alleged behaviour) has no place being undertaken in the name of charity, whether raising funds for good causes or not”.

She spoke out in response to a letter by 42 MPs, headed up by Lib Dem deputy leader Jo Swinson, which demanded an investigation into whether crimes were committed.

The politicians also called for a probe into whether the charity's trustees were "fit to hold such office".

A sexism row erupted surrounding the raucous charity fundraiser at London’s Dorchester Hotel where female hostesses in heels and short, tight dresses served an all-male crowd of leading businessmen and politicians.

An undercover sting, published by the Financial Times, exposed sexist behaviour at the event and claimed women were groped and harassed at an after-party and subjected to lewd remarks.

Ms Stephenson’s comments came as tens of thousands of people have backed a call for protection from sexual harassment in the workplace in the wake of the scandal.

Financial Times reporter Madison Marriage who went undercover to expose sexual harassment at the Presidents Club men-only charity dinner at the Dorchester Hotel last week
BBC Newsnight

An online petition was launched on Wednesday after the allegations emerged.

Signatures shot up to more than 50,000 in just 11 hours backing calls for the government to reinstate Section 40 of the Equality Act, which made employers liable for an employee being harassed by a third party - such as a customer - if the employer did not take reasonable steps to prevent it.

The section was repealed in 2013.

The woman who set up the petition claimed to have been a victim of inappropriate behaviour at work, and said she wanted to stop organisations "turning a blind eye" to the issue.

She wrote on the Change.org website: "The #MeToo and #TimesUp movement shows that those who commit sexual harassment can be held accountable by the people who work for or with them.

"But we need to improve the steps that are put in place to make sure perpetrators are held accountable not just by their workplace and society, but by law.

"It's time that Amber Rudd - Minister for Women and Equalities, Baroness Williams - Minister for Equalities, and the government started protecting women from sexual harassment from customers and clients, by re-introducing section 40 of the Equality Act and making sure that employees are protected."

Reports claimed that women were required to wear heels and short, tight dresses and all-black underwear.

Businessman David Meller is stepping down from the DfE's advisory board

Speaking anonymously to ITV News, one hostess described how she had been made to feel very uncomfortable during the evening and was shocked by the behaviour of some of those in attendance.

She told the broadcaster: "I realised quite soon it was an odd job. It wasn't a usual job. And the way the men behaved made me feel incredibly uncomfortable."

Asked what the overall message appeared to be after the women first entered the room at the event, she said: "We were play things. We were objects for them to gawp at, touch. To be laughed at."

Financial Times reporter Madison Marriage, who went undercover as part of the paper's investigation into the event, told BBC Newsnight: "I was groped several times and I know that there are numerous other hostesses who said the same thing had happened to them.

"It's hands up skirts, hands on bums but also hands on hips, hands on stomachs, arms going round your waist unexpectedly."

She added: "I can't believe that it still goes on in 2018, I think it's quite shocking."

The Presidents Club, which said it was "appalled" by the allegations surrounding the event last week, has announced it will distribute remaining funds to children's charities before shutting down in the wake of the scandal.

Theresa May is set to target gagging orders that prevent women reporting sexual harassment, according to The Times, following reports that hostesses at the event had to sign confidentiality agreements.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in