Overview
- During the last PMQs before Christmas, Keir Starmer said the government has issued a licence enabling £2.5 billion from the Chelsea sale proceeds linked to Roman Abramovich to be sent to Ukraine and told Abramovich to pay up now or be taken to court.
- Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch branded the Cabinet a "bunch of turkeys," called Starmer the "undertaker Prime Minister," and pressed him to ban resident doctors from striking as a new walkout began on Wednesday.
- Starmer taunted the Conservatives over defections to Reform UK and warned Reform MPs to report "mysterious men from the East," invoking a recent conviction tied to pro‑Russian bribery, as Nigel Farage watched from the gallery.
- Both leaders opened by condemning the Chanukah shooting in Sydney and expressing support for the Jewish community, with Badenoch linking the threat to Islamic extremism and Lib Dem leader Ed Davey asking about protections at home.
- Commentators described a fractious session with mixed festive barbs and leadership jibes, including the SNP’s Stephen Flynn suggesting this could be Starmer’s final Christmas in Downing Street.