Labour Restores Whip to Four MPs, Three Remain Suspended Over Policy Rebellion

The Labour Party reinstates four MPs after six-month suspensions for opposing the two-child benefit cap, while three others await further review.

Four Labour MPs, including Richard Burgon and Rebecca Long-Bailey, have had their party whip reinstated after being suspended for rebelling against the two-child benefit cap.
Three MPs—John McDonnell, Apsana Begum, and Zarah Sultana—remain suspended, with their status to be reviewed in the future.
The MPs were originally suspended in July 2024 after supporting an SNP amendment to the King's Speech that sought to abolish the two-child benefit limit.
The two-child benefit cap, introduced by Conservatives in 2017, has been widely criticized for exacerbating child poverty, affecting an estimated 1.6 million children.
Some of the suspended MPs have linked their ongoing exclusion to their criticism of Labour policies, including arms exports to Israel and their positions on the war in Gaza.