Keir Starmer Removes Labour Whip From 7 MPs Who Rebelled Over Two Child Benefit Cap

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has removed the Labour whip from seven MPs who defied him to vote for an opposition amendment calling for the two child benefit cap to be scrapped.

The new Labour Government experienced its first minor rebellion since being elected on 4 July after the Scottish National Party and the Liberal Democrats forced a House of Commons vote on abolishing the two child benefit cap.

The amendment by the SNP, which did not pass, expressed regret that scrapping the two child cap was not in the King's Speech, which sets out the Labour Government's agenda, and called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to "immediately abolish" it.

353 MPs voted against the amendment on Tuesday night, while 103 voted for it.

Seven Labour MPs defied Starmer to vote for the amendment. They included former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, former shadow business secretary Rebecca Long Bailey, and back bencher Zarah Sultana.

A Labour source confirmed to PoliticsHome that Starmer had removed the Labour whip from the seven MPs for a period of six months, at which point their status will be reviewed.

Seven Labour MPs rebelled to back the SNP's two child cap amendment

Begum, Burgon, Byrne, Hussain, John McDonnell, Sultana

As our @nadinebh_ reported earlier, Labour MPs had been threatened with having the whip removed if they defied the Government

While it was highly unlikely the government would be defeated on the motion due to its 174 seat majority in the House of Commons, the rebellion by the Labour left will likely increase pressure on the Government to lift the cap when it holds its first budget in the Autumn.

Several dozen Labour MPs abstained on the SNP amendment. 

Earlier in the day, Labour MPs who were planning on voting for the opposition