More may have been achieved to stop thefts on the British Museum, chairman George Osborne has admitted – as he vowed to “clear up the mess”.
The former chancellor stated an estimated 2,000 objects have been stolen “over a long period of time”, however added: “We have started to recover some of the stolen items, which is a silver lining to a dark cloud.”
He apologised for the scandal, and admitted it had triggered reputational injury to the establishment.
“On behalf of the British Museum, I want to apologise for what has happened,” Mr Osborne informed BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
“We imagine we have been the sufferer of thefts over an extended time frame and, frankly, extra may have been achieved to stop them.
“But I promise you this: it is a mess that we are going to clear up. I can tell you today that we’ve already started to recover some of the stolen items.”
The former minister stated an impartial evaluation will have a look at “how… the museum missed some of the signals that could have been picked up”, regardless of the museum being informed by an antiquities seller that objects have been being bought on eBay in 2021.
Mr Osborne was talking after the museum’s director resigned within the wake of the scandal.
Hartwig Fischer stated the state of affairs is “of the utmost seriousness” and he has “sadly come to the conclusion” that his presence is “proving a distraction”.
It was introduced later the identical day the museum’s deputy director, Jonathan Williams, had “agreed to voluntarily step back from his normal duties”.
Read extra:
Nigeria calls for return of Benin bronzes
British Museum ‘was warned about thefts years in the past’
That would be the case “until the independent review into the thefts at the museum has concluded”, the museum stated.
The museum stated final week that objects from its assortment have been “missing, stolen or damaged” and an unnamed employees member had been sacked.
Mr Osborne informed the BBC: “I don’t myself believe there was a sort of deliberate cover-up, although the review may find that to be the case.
“But was there some potential groupthink within the museum on the time, on the very high of the museum, that simply could not imagine that an insider was stealing issues, could not imagine that one of many members of employees have been doing this? Yes, that is very attainable.”
Police in London said in the week a man had been interviewed in connection with the alleged thefts, but added no arrests had been made and officers would work “intently” with the establishment.
Source: information.sky.com”