diff --git a/Release.gitlab-ci.yml b/Release.gitlab-ci.yml
index ab82f02..a2d4577 100644
--- a/Release.gitlab-ci.yml
+++ b/Release.gitlab-ci.yml
@@ -49,9 +49,13 @@ handle_mr:
   needs:
   - changelog
   before_script:
-  - 'apk add --no-cache jq curl'
+  - 'apk add --no-cache git jq curl'
   script:
   - |
+    if [[ "$(cat VERSION)" == "$(git describe --abbrev=0 --tags)" ]]; then
+      echo "No changes worthy of a version bump"
+      exit 0
+    fi
     echo "Fetching existing release MRs"
     MRS=$(curl -s \
             -H "Authorization: Bearer ${UNBOUND_RELEASE_TOKEN}" \