Keir Starmer has lightheartedly joked about Reform UK during a recent parliamentary session, poking fun at the party’s former leader in Wales for allegedly accepting Russian bribes.
During his last Prime Minister’s Questions of the year, Starmer extended Christmas greetings to Members of Parliament, parliamentary staff, and their families in Westminster before addressing Nigel Farage’s party.
In a moment of humor in the Commons, Starmer quipped, “A little festive advice to those in Reform. If mysterious men bearing gifts from the East show up, make sure to report it to the police this time.”
The comment elicited laughter from MPs in the chamber, with Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice reacting animatedly. Farage, visibly displeased about his limited speaking time in PMQs, was observed shaking his head from the public gallery.
The jest comes after Nathan Gill, the former leader of Reform in Wales, was sentenced to a 10-and-a-half-year prison term for accepting bribes to promote pro-Russia narratives in the European Parliament.
Gill, who previously served as an MEP for UKIP and the Brexit Party under Nigel Farage’s leadership, later led Reform in Wales in 2021 but resigned after failing to secure a seat in the 2021 Senedd election.
The 52-year-old from Anglesey, North Wales, received payments exceeding £40,000 from former Ukrainian MP Oleg Voloshyn, identified by the US Government as linked to Russian security services.
Following Gill’s conviction, Starmer initiated an investigation into foreign financial interference in British politics. Communities Secretary Steve Reed labeled the case as a “blemish on our democracy” and outlined plans for an independent inquiry.
Reed condemned Gill’s actions, stating, “An elected official accepted bribes to echo the propaganda of a hostile state, siding with aggressors responsible for tragic events like the death of Dawn Sturgess on British soil and the invasion of Ukraine.”
Farage, while dismissing inquiries into Russian influences within his party, expressed support for a nationwide investigation, acknowledging the need for transparency amidst doubts on various fronts.