Recommendation 23

We asked the Department what actions it was taking to support the museums and galleries to reduce the risk of thefts from their collections. The Department told us that it regularly discussed security matters at is meetings with the Chairs, CEOs, Finance Directors and the heads of Audit and Risk Committees of the museums and galleries.51 It also pointed to the National Museum Security Group which has 200 museums across the UK and meets to share good practice, including learning from the British Museum and Louvre thefts, and liaise with UK law enforcement.52 However, it assured us that, in the past four years, there had only been four instances of thefts or missing objects from its 15 museums and galleries in the last four years.53 We asked the Department for examples of specific changes made by museums and galleries as a result of the thefts. In response, it pointed to the increased digitisation of collections, for example of the British Museum, and the associated improvement in record keeping which helps with the identification of thefts.54 We mentioned other potential controls 48 Qq 26 and 28 49 Q 27; HMG, Government Cyber Action Plan, CP 1473, 6 January 2026 [updated 20 March 2026] 50 Qq 26-28 51 Q 43 52 Qq 26, 38 and 43 53 Q 38 54 Qq 39-41 16 against thefts, such as robust whistleblowing procedures so people could share their concerns and proper systems for removing access from people leaving an organisation. In response, the Department mentioned that these were operational matters and the responsibility of the museums’ and galleries’ trustees.55 However, it assured us that the British Museum thefts had shocked the sector and had pushed the risk of thefts, and the need for proper systems to address this risk, up the agenda of its museums’ and galleries’ audit and risk committees.56 Well-equipped Boards of Trustees