London Mayor Sadiq Khan vows to protect historic Royal Vauxhall Tavern against developers
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has backed a campaign to save legendary gay venue the Royal Vauxhall Tavern.
Mr Khan backed the campaign to save the RVT, which became a listed building in 2015 after being bought by developers back in 2014.
The Mayor has backed a campaign to have special planning designation meaning the venue must be used as an LGBT+ performance space.
The campaign RVT Future, backed by Mr Khan, has requested the designation of ‘sui generis’.
People with evidence that the Grade II listed venue venue is used for LGBT+ performances, are urged to contact Lambeth Council.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Protecting London’s LGBT+ venues is an integral part of my plans to grow London’s cultural sector – one of my core priorities as Mayor. For more than half a century, the Royal Vauxhall Tavern has been an icon of LGBT+ performance, helping members of an often vulnerable community to take pride in their identity, and enriching London as a whole.
“The recent tragedy in Orlando is a terrible reminder that the struggle for acceptance amongst the LGBT+ community is ongoing. And London’s response to the tragedy, where communities congregated in and around LGBT+ venues to show their solidarity demonstrates how crucial venues like the Royal Vauxhall Tavern are to the city’s social and cultural infrastructure. I commend RVT Future for the work they’ve done in their campaign to date and I urge Lambeth Council to do everything it can to help the Tavern to continue to thrive as an LGBT+ destination.”
Mr Khan said he wanted to protect cultural and creative industries.
Amy Lamé, Chair of RVT Future: “The Royal Vauxhall Tavern is irreplaceable. We’re thrilled to have Sadiq’s support and we urge any other friends of the RVT to submit evidence to the council. This will help us resist the property developers and, we hope, eventually bring the RVT into community ownership.”
The Mayor will host an LGBT+ fundraiser at the RVT.
