Parthenon Statues Controversy: British Museum Chair Blasts Rishi Sunak’s ‘Hissy Fit’, Defends Negotiations With Greece Over the ‘Elgin Marbles’

 

Once upon a time, British roved unchecked through the seven seas, pillaging for Queen and Country. And now, they want to – at least – keep the booty.

When Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pulled a meeting with his Greek counterpart over the destiny of the Parthenon statues, he ‘opened the door to a ‘devastating line of attack’ from Labour, according to British Museum’s chair (and former Tory Minister) George Osborne.

Osborne said the row encouraged the institution to press ahead with talks over ‘loaning’ the Parthenon marbles to Athens.

The Guardian reported:

 

“Osborne said: ‘That is, I think, something worth exploring. And we can go on doing it whether or not Rishi Sunak meets the Greek prime minister or not. In fact, if anything, things have been rather clarified by this week. We obviously know we’re not going to get any particular support from the Conservative government’.”

The Premier office said that Osborne, ‘as a private individual’, could continue with any talks with the Greek authorities.

Sunak warned that moves to remove the sculptures from the UK as a ‘slippery slope’ leading to the return of other ‘contested antiquities’.

“Osborne said on his podcast, Political Currency, that he had been trying to find out what lay behind Sunak’s decision to cancel the meeting with the Greek PM, Kyriakos Mitsotakis. He said he had examined theories including that it was a ‘dead cat’ strategy to deflect from the government’s woes around immigration policy and an attempt to impress “red wall” voters.

‘Then you ask the question, is it just petulance? Is it just having a bit of a hissy fit? And, I think if that’s the reason it’s not because Mitsotakis was going to raise the Elgin marbles. It’s because he had met [Labour leader] Keir Starmer the day before’, said Osborne.

‘And I think in No 10, I remember being there in 1996 and 1997, you can sort of feel the power start to drain from the building when you’re getting close to an election which people think you’re not going to win. And I thought, you know, what Rishi Sunak did was open the door – and this was definitely not what he should have done – to a pretty devastating line of attack from Keir Starmer at prime minister’s questions this week’.”

Osborne added that the British Museum was not attempting to change the 1963 law that forbids the museum from permanently removing objects from its collection.

But he confirmed talks with the Greek authorities about a potential deal.

The negotiations involve the sculptures being shown part of the time in London and part in Athens.

Britain would receive loaned ‘Greek treasures’ in return for sharing the ‘Elgin Marbles’.

Politico reported:

“The sculptures were removed from Athens by diplomat Lord Elgin in the 19th century and have been housed in the British Museum since then, despite much campaigning for their return.

Osborne went on to say that Sunak, who leads the Conservative Party Osborne himself was once a key player in, had tried to score “cheap points” over the marbles and suggested he may be driven by frustration at power ‘draining away’ from No. 10 Downing Street as Labour leads in the polls.

He brushed off the impact of the row on the British Museum’s own discussions with Greece over custody of the marbles. The London museum had, he said, been exploring a deal ‘whereby they spend part of their time in Athens and part of their time in London — and we have Greek treasures coming our way in return. And that is, I think, something worth exploring’.”