Dr Fraser Peck, a councillor in the City, was one of several former Guild of Young Freemen members involved in the scandal
Individuals involved in a WhatsApp scandal in the City of London have been banned from future events hosted by the Corporation, including a sitting councillor.
Several former members of the Guild of Young Freemen (GYF) were found to be part of two WhatsApp groups in which misogynistic, racist and ableist content was allegedly shared. The GYF, which is independent of the City of London Corporation, conducted an investigation into the claims.
It identified several individuals involved in the groups and excluded them from future activities and events. None of those implicated remain members at the Guild following the investigation.
Among the individuals named in the report was Common Councillor Dr Fraser Peck, a representative of Farringdon Within who sat on the GYF as Middle Warden.
He resigned from the Guild shortly after the allegations emerged late last year, though there has been no confirmation of Cllr Peck’s precise involvement in the scandal.
A spokesperson for the City of London Corporation previously told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that it would decide whether to follow the GYF’s lead and ban those involved “in due course”.
It has now been confirmed that elected members have agreed the “offending individuals” will not be invited to future hospitality events hosted by the Corporation, including dinners at Guildhall and Mansion House.
According to its website the GYF was founded in 1976 “to provide a platform for young professionals to engage with the civic and historical traditions of the City”.
While it has connections with the Corporation, including former Lord Mayor Alderman Alastair King listed as a past Honorary President, it is technically independent of the local authority.
How independent however is another matter. Alderwoman Martha Grekos previously told the LDRS the Guild and the Corporation are “intimately connected”, due to connections such as the City’s premises being used by the GYF for meetings and dinners.
The allegations regarding explicit messages being shared in WhatsApp groups were raised late last year, following which the GYF launched its investigation.
A statement was published on February 5 by Michael Polak, the new Master of the GYF, in which he commented on the action taken.
He wrote: “I extend my personal apologies to those who have been in any way affected by the unacceptable conduct displayed by previous members of the Court. Since last week, none of those individuals have remained members of the Guild, and they are not welcome at our future activities and events.”
None of those involved were publicly named, and a GYF spokesperson previously said they were unable to disclose information about past or present members without their consent.
The LDRS has however seen images of the GYF’s report and can confirm Cllr Peck was among those identified as participating in the groups.
Local City blog Reclaim EC1 was the first to report further details of the exclusions in a post in February.
The LDRS has since been chasing the Corporation for an update on whether it will mirror the GYF’s ban on those involved from future events.
This week, a spokesperson confirmed members have chosen to take action. They said: “The GYF is independent of the City Corporation.
“We do not tolerate discrimination in any form. Elected Members have agreed that the offending individuals from GYF will not be invited to hospitality events hosted by the City Corporation.”
The LDRS approached Cllr Peck received no response at the time of publication.
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