British Museum defends its sponsorship ties with BP

 The director of the British Museum has defended its sponsorship deal with BP, saying the institution is reliant on money from the oil giant.

The museum is under pressure from environmental campaigners to cut ties with the multinational, following the example set by the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

Troy: Myth and Reality, the British Museum’s latest exhibition, opens next week and is sponsored by BP. Hartwig Fischer, speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, said: “We need corporate and private sponsorship to fulfil our public mission.”

Ahdaf Soueif, the novelist, resigned as a trustee earlier this year over the BP links, saying the museum was failing in its moral responsibilities. But Mr Fischer said: “I think our first moral responsibility is to offer to the public the opportunity to engage with the cultures of humankind.”