A pre-Christmas morning at the Houses of Parliament was thrown into chaos on Thursday 18 December 2025 after a seemingly innocent box of festive greetings triggered a full-scale security lockdown. The incident led to the deployment of a bomb disposal robot and widespread disruption around Westminster.
Early Morning Lockdown Sparks Commuter Chaos
The alarm was raised before 7.30am, as police swiftly cordoned off Parliament Square and the Millbank area. Commuters arriving for one of the final working days before the Christmas recess found themselves unable to access the parliamentary estate. Authorities had taped off the vicinity due to what was initially reported as a "suspicious package".
Specialist officers from the bomb squad were immediately dispatched to the scene. The tense situation escalated with the arrival of a bomb disposal robot, which was unloaded by experts in front of the iconic Palace of Westminster. The remote-controlled device was sent in to conduct a careful inspection of the unknown item while officers monitored its feed from a safe distance.
The Reveal: A Minister's Unsent Festive Greetings
After a thorough examination by the robot, the mysterious package was identified not as an explosive device, but as a box of unsent Christmas cards. Further investigation by Sky News revealed the cards were in a box bearing the name of Communities Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh MP.
Adding to the urgency of the misplaced delivery, many of the cards were marked "most urgent"—a fitting label given that Parliament was due to rise for its Christmas recess at the end of the same day. The box was discovered just outside the parliamentary estate, having apparently never reached its intended recipient.
Aftermath and Ironic Twist
While the incident concluded without danger, it caused significant operational disruption and placed the Met Police's security protocols in the spotlight. It is understood that Ms Fahnbulleh was expecting a delivery of cards that had failed to arrive through normal channels.
The episode provides a stark, if somewhat humorous, reminder of the high-alert environment surrounding the UK's seat of power. One can safely assume that both parliamentary security teams and the Metropolitan Police might find themselves at the very top of the minister's Christmas card list this year, following their cautious and thorough response to her misplaced festive mail.
