Prime Minister Keir Starmer has suspended four Labour MPs for defying the party line on welfare reform proposals, signalling a renewed effort to clamp down on internal dissent.
Neil Duncan-Jordan, Chris Hinchliff, Brian Leishman, and Rachael Maskell were suspended on Wednesday, July 16, following meetings with the Chief Whip, PoliticsHome reports. In addition, MPs Rosena Allin-Khan, Bell Ribeiro-Addy, and Mohammed Yasin were removed from their positions as trade envoys.
According to Labour sources, the suspensions were issued for repeated breaches of party discipline and will remain in effect pending a formal review.
The action follows a rebellion earlier this month, where over 40 Labour MPs voted against the government’s proposed welfare reforms. Among them, Maskell, MP for York Central, introduced a reasoned amendment aimed at rejecting the proposals outright.
The Labour Party has faced internal pressure in recent months over the government’s plans to change disability and welfare benefits. In June, warnings of a significant backbench revolt prompted the government to scale back some of its proposals.
Speaking after his suspension, Duncan-Jordan, MP for Poole, defended his stance and reaffirmed his commitment to Labour’s values.
“Since being elected, I have consistently spoken up for my constituents on issues including the cuts to disability benefits,” he said. “I understood this could come at a cost, but I couldn’t support making disabled people poorer. Although I’ve been suspended from the Parliamentary Labour Party, I’ve been part of the Labour and trade union movement for 40 years and remain as committed as ever.”
“To my constituents: it’s business as usual. I remain your hardworking local MP and will continue to speak up for Poole.”
One Labour source reportedly told The Times the MPs were suspended for “persistent knobheadery.” A loyalist MP echoed the sentiment to PoliticsHome, saying: “This isn’t about criticism. This is tiresome dickheadery. The story is what these individuals have done. The government is right to respond — it had to.”
