Have your say on government e-petitions

Amend the British Museum Act to allow artefact repatriation

Submitted by Mina Reeves on Wednesday 5th November 2025

Published on Wednesday 17th December 2025

Current status: Open

Open until: Wednesday 17th June 2026

Current Signatures: 54
(count is updated approximately hourly)

Relevant Departments

Tagged with

athens ~ British ~ British Museum ~ country ~ Culture ~ history ~ Moral ~ Morally ~ Parthenon ~ Plea ~ Reform ~ Return ~ Shameful ~ Studies ~ The Act ~ The British ~ The Return

Petition Action

Amend the British Museum Act to allow artefact repatriation

Petition Details

I would like for the government to reform the act, to allow the return of multiple contested items from the museum to the respective countries. For example, the Parthenon Sculptures, which were taken from Athens. The act is outdated and needs dire reform.

Additional Information

As a young historian, it is imperative that the study of history and archaeology is in moral and legitimate way, which I believe is not obtainable within the limits of the act. I believe that only allowing the country in which the artefacts were taken from to 'borrow' their own culture and history is outdated and shameful. We should be working to put our own history in the British Museum rather than showing the history of others. Please, consider my plea and consider our moral obligation.


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