The Early Day Motion that wasn’t

Following being the first website to cover Andrew George’s Early Day motion ^[1] on the Stonehenge megaliths in Greece, it appears that the motion could not be tabled because it did not meet the requirement to have a “reasonable factual basis”.

The press release from Andrew George’s office explains this in more detail.

ANDREW GEORGE MP
HOUSE OF COMMONS
LONDON SW1A 0AA

PRESS RELEASE
Wednesday 1st April 2009
For immediate release

COMMONS HAS SENSE OF HUMOUR BYPASS

Andrew George, MP for the West Cornwall and Isle of Scilly Constituency of St. Ives, has expressed disappointment that parliamentary rules disallowed his proposed Commons motion as tabled last night to be published this morning, Wednesday 1st April 2009. The motion read:

RETURN OF THE STONEHENGE MEGALITHS FROM GREECE

That this House is euphoric about the news of the discovery of many of the missing megaliths from Stonehenge in a remote and mountainous area of the Peloponnese Peninsula in Greece to where they were apparently taken to build an amphitheatre; considers this to be the single most important discovery in British archaeology for centuries, yet is astounded at the brazen effrontery of the Greek authorities who have scandalously refused their return to Britain where they rightly belong; believe the Greeks have attempted to defend their decision with the shameless and preposterous poppycock conventionally deployed by an ancient colonial power; calls on the Greeks to put right the wrongs of their forebears during that shameful period of ancient Greek imperial history; and asks the HM Government, on the day of the announcement of this discovery (April 1st 2009), to answer the extraordinary Greek claim that there is no difference between this and the holding by the British Museum of the Parthenon Marbles.

House rules require Commons motions to “have a reasonable factual basis”, even on April 1st.

Mr George is the Chair of Marbles Reunited, the UK campaign organisation which is seeking the return of the Parthenon sculptures to their home in Greece. The majority of the sculptures remaining outside Greece are currently held by the British Museum and are known as the ‘Elgin Marbles’.

Mr George is calling for the return of the sculptures to coincide with the opening of the New Acropolis Museum in Athens later this year.

ENDS

The original story was also covered on the Illicit Cultural Property blog ^[2].