ATG have discovered that the official-sounding report from which the claim arises was commissioned by the TV company making the series - a fact that remains unreported in a number of the articles published - and that the TV company has declined to publish the report, instead issuing a press release with a series of bullet point findings from it.
We have also discovered that the limited information released from the report does not support the headline 40% claim in any way.
Now, however, a number of articles and blogs on the internet are spreading the claim even further, effectively reinforcing what has the potential to be a very damaging message for the UK art and antiques industry.
ATG have decided to challenge this claim.
