Summary

  • Rishi Sunak is facing one final grilling from MPs before Christmas, as he sits in front of the Liaison Committee of senior MPs

  • During an exchange about civilian deaths in Gaza, he says: "I think that's genuinely an extraordinary question"

  • He says if Hamas is "deliberately embedding itself inside civilian populations, they have to accept responsibility"

  • He adds that Israel "should take every precaution to avoid harming civilians", but he says it's "very difficult" when Hamas puts civilians in "harm's way"

  • Sunak also refuses to give an updated cost of his flagship Rwanda scheme, which has so far cost over £240m

  • Elsewhere, the prime minister says the "increasingly complex, hostile international environment" is one of the greatest challenges the UK faces

  • The Liaison Committee quizzing the PM is a super-group made up of the chairs of all other committees - and its job is to scrutinise the PM's work

Live Reporting

Edited by Francesca Gillett & Lisa Lambert

  1. What is the liaison committee?

    Screen grab taken from Parliament TV of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak appearing for the first time in front of the Commons Liaison Committee of select committee chairs, in the House of Commons, London. Picture date: Tuesday December 20, 2022. See PA story POLITICS Liaison. Photo credit should read: House of Commons/PA WirePA Media

    Sunak appearing in front of the committee earlier this year, in March

    For each government department, there's a select committee of MPs tasked with scrutinising its work.

    The Liaison Committee is a super-committee made up of all the chairs of these senior select committees, covering a wide areas such as home affairs, foreign affairs and the Treasury.

    They act as a team of policy specialists to question the government’s record in office. They are presided over by Sir Bernard Jenkin, who is chair of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee.

    It meets three times a year, specifically to scrutinise the work of the prime minister. Like the Houses of Parliament, the majority of members of the committee are Conservative MPs.

    But this has not saved previous Tory prime ministers from a savaging in the past.

  2. Welcome to a little politics Christmas gift

    Prime Minister Rishi SunakGetty Images

    MPs break up for Christmas later today

    It’s nearly Christmas and maybe, just maybe, Rishi Sunak is looking forward to a short break from all the recent political drama - but first he must face one more grilling by MPs.

    The heads of key parliamentary committees – which collectively make up the Liaison Committee - will question the PM on his record in office and his upcoming plans.

    Questions are likely to cover key issues such as the Israel-Gaza war, the COP28 climate talks and the government’s Rwanda policy.

    The session gets going at 13:00 GMT, so stay tuned as we bring you all the key moments.