Overview

• John McDonnell and Apsana Begum had the Labour whip reinstated on Friday after a conversation with Chief Whip Jonathan Reynolds, 14 months after they backed an SNP amendment to the king’s speech calling for an end to the two‑child cap.
• The timing lands just before Labour’s annual conference in Liverpool, where pressure over the two‑child cap and wider welfare policy is expected to dominate debate.
• Four of the seven original rebels — Rebecca Long-Bailey, Ian Byrne, Imran Hussain and Richard Burgon — regained the whip in February, while Zarah Sultana left the party and is working to launch a new leftwing party with Jeremy Corbyn.
• The Electoral Commission said it will not reopen its 2021 probe into Labour Together’s late-reported donations, reaffirming its original findings and fine over £739,492 in contributions.
• Internal strains persist as Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham criticised Keir Starmer and said MPs had urged him to run, though ministers stressed he would face significant procedural hurdles to mount any leadership challenge.