53% of respondents in a poll conducted by YouGov in the United Kingdom were in favour of the return of the Parthenon Sculptures. Just 24% were against, while 23% said they had no opinion. A total of 4280 adults were surveyed across the country. The poll was published today, Monday 2 December.

The exact question was: “The British Museum in London is home to the Parthenon Sculptures (also known as the Elgin Marbles), a set of classical Greek sculptures removed from the Parthenon in Athens 200 years ago by Lord Elgin. Some believe that Britain should return the Marbles to Greece, while others believe they should remain here. Do you personally believe that Britain should return the Elgin Marbles to Greece or keep them in Britain?
Some people think that Britain should return the Elgin Marbles to Greece, while others think that Britain should keep them in Britain.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the British Museum, when asked about the progress of the negotiations, replied that “discussions with Greece over the Parthenon are ongoing and constructive. We believe that a long-term partnership will strike the right balance between sharing our greatest artefacts with audiences worldwide and preserving the integrity of the incredible collection we have at the museum.”

It is understood that the Greek and British sides are in advanced talks over the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures. The big thorn in the negotiations is still the ownership of the property. The British do not accept that we own them and we do not accept to take them in the form of a loan.

The preferred solution seems to be to transfer them to Athens in the form of a Deposit. That is, the British would retain ownership, but Greece would have the right of use, without having to recognize ownership.

The Greek side is discussing the issue with the British Museum, which is the competent authority. Kyriakos Mitsotakis is expected to raise the issue with his British counterpart tomorrow at their meeting in Downing Street in the morning. Sir Kir Starmer has long said that he does not intend to bring obstacles if there is finally an agreement between Greece and the British Museum.