Elite Sydney men’s club to vote on allowing women to join

A glorified men’s shed hosting harmless secret men’s business or an out-dated, sexist anachronism?

The heated debate on whether to allow women to join one of this city’s last bastions of old-world, gentlemanly tradition and privilege - The Australian Club - will come to a head over a sandwich buffet on Tuesday morning.

Sydney’s Australian Club, where the continued absence of the fairer sex is a source of embarrassment for more modern members.Credit: Jacky Ghossein

Organisers are expecting up to 800 members of the exclusive club to gather on the 9th floor at 165 Macquarie Street at 10am to vote on changing the secretive 183-year-old club’s constitution, which dictates only men can join.

For nearly two centuries women have only been allowed at the club, which claims the likes of John Howard, George Pell, Malcolm Turnbull and James Packer among its ranks, as guests of male members, some of whom are now agitating for change.

But it remains to be seen if many high-profile, successful 21st century women are interested in joining.

John and Janette Howard arrive at the former prime minister’s 80th birthday party at the Australian Club in 2019.Credit: James Alcock

Lucy Turnbull, whose father and grandfather were members, has previously said she would “have to think about it”.

The vote comes two years after it first emerged moves were afoot by sections of the club’s membership advocating for women to join.

They have since been met with fierce opposition from club stalwarts, most notably former Federal Court judge Peter Graham, who wrote to members a fortnight ago decrying any change to the status quo.

However, his letter has only amplified unwanted media scrutiny on the club’s policies.

Graham argues the push for female membership was based on “fallacious reasoning” stemming from a town hall meeting in May 2019. He claims 33 members had expressed a wide variety of views - not just on women members - ranging from dress code and “stuffiness” to mobile phone usage and the admission of “Asian” members.

“One point that if we were to allow female members, it would double the pool from which we could draw,” Graham wrote.

“Another was that the women members you’d get, would be women you wouldn’t want. Another was that the club provided a place where you could get away from ‘bossy women’.”

He argued a drawn-out survey and investigation into allowing female membership, aided by outside advisers and consultants, was an unnecessary waste of resources.

He supported the issue being dealt with by a members’ vote at the special general meeting on Tuesday, thwarting the negative impact of the issue appearing in “gossip columns” which - he claimed - could threaten his beloved club’s very existence.

“In a free society, envy and jealousy are not relevant yard-sticks for destroying the established order of things,” Mr Graham huffed in his missive.

Mr Graham’s supporters are quietly confident Tuesday’s vote will not reach the critical 75 per cent in favour required to get female membership over the line, and such a result will effectively quash any similar moves for years.

Ironically the club recently retained the services of one of Australia’s most prolific corporate media advisers - a woman - Sue Cato - in an attempt to mitigate fallout from unwanted scrutiny, however management retained its strict “no comment” policy leading up to this week’s historic vote.

On the eve of the vote, the club refused to share any information on how many members it has, their age or ethnic makeup.

An equally rigid membership gender policy is also adhered to at the Queen’s Club a few city blocks away which allows only women to join.

Mr Graham praised the two clubs “splendid brother/sister” relationship.

“Our club’s members are regularly entertained by their wives or lady friends,” Mr Graham wrote.

“When this occurs, one of the niceties is the way that the staff at The Queen’s Club serve the gentlemen guests first and their lady hosts last!”

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