Parliamentary Snooker Group supports women players

The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Snooker is committed to supporting snooker in all its forms. Snooker is one of the few sports where women and girls can and do play alongside their male counterparts at all levels.

Rebecca Kenna, who recently took the decision to step down from playing in her local league after not being allowed to play in two men-only clubs, is one of the UK’s most talented snooker players.

The Group believes that being prevented from playing in a club because of gender is archaic and it fully supports her and the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association in their making the game open to all. We recognise this as a fairly isolated incident, and not something that is widespread across the UK.

Member of Parliament for Keighley, John Grogan, has spoken with the local league. Afterwards, he said: “this issue is around two clubs of seventeen restricting access to women players, meaning they cannot participate in a thriving local league. The other fifteen clubs in the league welcome women players and the league itself welcomes all comers to take part in their local competitions. They have my and the Group’s full support in taking steps to encourage the two clubs clubs to change their rules and agree to welcome women players. I will be inviting Rebecca and other women in snooker to Parliament to see where we can help.”

Group Chairman, Conor Burns, Member of Parliament for Bournemouth West added: “For Rebecca and other female players to be prevented from taking part in a league that is open to all is discriminatory, and it means the players in those clubs are prevented from taking part in matches against a very talented snooker player. I and the Group encourage those clubs to reconsider their position, and quickly.”

The Group will write to the clubs in question on their position, as well as send letters of support to the local league, the English Association of Snooker and Billiards, and the international governing bodies World Women’s Snooker and World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, all of whom have made their position on female participation in snooker very clear.