Overview
- In early September 2026 Prime Minister Andy Burnham publicly stepped back from earlier calls to send the Parthenon Marbles to Greece, telling the Financial Times the issue rests with the British Museum.
- Burnham had previously urged unconditional return in 2002 and again in 2023 when he said the sculptures should be sent back “no strings,” making his new stance a notable reversal since he became prime minister in July 2026.
- The 1963 British Museum Act restricts the trustees from permanently disposing of items, and the museum argues that keeping the sculptures divided between London and Athens serves public interest.
- Greece’s restitution request, first made in 1983, remains unresolved; the Acropolis Museum in Athens — opened in 2009 to house returned pieces — and recent UNESCO comments have kept international pressure on the issue.
- Burnham’s shift narrows the routes for reunification to either a change in museum trustees’ policy or new legislation, which could weaken immediate diplomatic leverage and leave the dispute to legal and institutional processes.