Latest news with #welfare reforms
Bloomberg
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Ailbhe Rea: Keir Starmer Implements a Quiet Government Reset
It's been two weeks since Keir Starmer's government faced its moment of crisis, forced to gut its flagship welfare reforms after coming dangerously close to a staggering, almost unprecedented, defeat by its own MPs. There has been no reshuffle, no blame game, no firing spree, no reset — so quiet, in fact, that some of my government contacts have asked me if the people at the top even realise how bad that was. My answer to them is that the man in charge does indeed seem to understand the depth of the problem. Because my sources tell me that the prime minister has, ever so quietly, made a major shift, with potentially huge implications for the direction of the government in the months ahead.
Sky News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Sky News
'People are not more important than the team': Minister backs Labour rebels' suspension
The suspension of four Labour rebels sends the "right signal" that if MPs stray too far outside they are "undermining the team" and that cannot be allowed, a senior minister told Sky News. Steve Reed, the environment secretary, told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips there are "ways of going about" concerns MPs may have with policies - and there are "ways of not going about that". Earlier this week Brian Leishman, Chris Hinchliff, Neil Duncan-Jordan and Rachael Maskell were suspended from Labour after voting against the government's welfare reforms. They will now sit as independent MPs. Some backbench Labour MPs have criticised Sir Keir Starmer's decision as "appalling" and a "terrible look", but Mr Reed strongly supported the move. The environment secretary said he understands they were suspended "not for any one particular issue, there was a pattern of behaviour". "I think it is fair that if you're part of a team, you should be required to play the team game," he said. "You can make your views known, but if you go too far outside, you're actually undermining the whole team. We can't allow that." He added: "If people think they're more important than the team, they need to think again." Veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott was also suspended this week, pending an investigation, after defending previous comments where she said people of colour have a different experience of racism than white people, such as Jewish, Irish and travellers. It is the second time she has been suspended over the same issue, after she said the same thing last year ahead of the election, but was readmitted after apologising. Mr Reed said he is "very disappointed" in Ms Abbott but her suspension is "out of my hands". "I respect Diane, I've known Diane for many, many decades. I think it's a shame she did what she did," he added. 49:36 Commenting on the suspension, Ms Abbott told Sky News: "It's obvious this Labour leadership wants me out. My comments in the interview with James Naughtie were factually correct, as any fair-minded person would accept." The clip of the interview was re-posted by Mr Leishman, one of the MPs suspended on Wednesday, who said: "Diane Abbott has fought against racism her entire life."
The Sun
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Ed Miliband's deputy sent secret WhatsApp messages to Labour rebels working to torpedo PM's welfare reforms
ED Miliband's protege sent secret WhatsApp messages to Labour rebels working to torpedo Keir Starmer's welfare reforms, The Sun on Sunday can reveal. Net Zero minister Miatta Fahnbulleh was active on key WhatsApp chats used to organise the revolt - posting several messages. She was even considering resigning to inflict maximum damage on the PM, senior Labour insiders believe. Ms Fahnbulleh is a former aide to Mr Miliband and he is believed to be working to help her to be party leader one day. After being elected MP last year, she was immediately handed a plum ministerial job in his energy department. The bombshell revelations will inevitably spark questions about Red Ed's loyalty to the PM. A Labour insider said: 'It's astonishing that after just a year, this minister is more interested in her own ambitions than delivering for the people who have elected her and the Labour government.' Sir Keir was forced to tear up his plan to trim £5 billion from Britain's bloated benefits bill after an astonishing Labour backbench rebellion late last month. Over 120 Labour MPs signed a rebel amendment scuppering the plan - forcing the PM into a humiliating U-turn. It was an extraordinary challenge to Sir Keir's leadership just a year after he swooped to power in a landslide victory. And now The Sun on Sunday can reveal that a Labour minister - Ms Fahnbulleh - was in the thick of the rebel plot. She was on two separate WhatsApp chats with other Labour MPs used to organise the revolt. Changes to UC & PIP payments in full as Labour reveals bruising welfare bill concessions in bid to quell rebellion One was called Sunday Lunch Organising and the other was called Buffet Organising - covert names which gave no indication of what was actually being discussed. The minister sent several texts on the groups, including one which described the government's welfare plan as a 'mess'. She also allegedly cast doubt over the explanation given by ministers regarding the reforms. Ms Fahnbulleh was also allegedly spotted having 'victory drinks' in Parliament's famous Terrace bar - overlooking the River Thames - with a gang of Labour welfare rebels on the day the PM was forced to U-turn. Last night, Ms Fahnbulleh's office said: 'What is implied here is simply untrue. Miatta publicly backed the government and voted for the Universal Credit Bill at every stage.' They declined to comment further on the Whatsapps. Ms Fahnbulleh was elected MP for Peckham, in south London - succeeding former Labour Party deputy Harriet Harman. A high flier, she has previously worked for Mr Miliband when he was Labour leader and ran the New Economics Foundation - a leftwing think-tank. Last year, Labour bible The New Statesman put her on their 'Left Power List' as one of the 50 most influential people in leftwing politics in Britain. A Labour insider said: 'She is close to Ed Miliband and it's a pretty open secret that she is his pick to be leader one day.' A spokesman for Mr Miliband said: 'These are spurious and nonsense allegations. Ed supported the welfare bill at all stages.' Who are Labour's 'five families' who could cause trouble for PM Sir Keir Starmer Labour's 'five families' of rival factions have the potential to cause trouble for Sir Keir Starmer. Here are the Mafia-style clans vying for power and influence in Britain's governing party. In a nod to The Godfather film, we have given each family a horses head rating to show how dangerous they are to the PM. THE HARD-LEFT: A hardcore of around 25 former die-hard Corbynistas who are in the Socialist Campaign group. They loathe the PM and want higher taxes and spending. Led by John McDonnell inside Labour. Includes Jeremy Corbyn's new party outside. They can inflict pain on No10, but are limited in number. Head rating: 2/5 THE SOFT LEFT: A large chunk of Labour MPs are in this faction, which led the welfare rebellion. Includes Ed Miliband, Louise Haigh and suspended welfare rebel Rachael Maskell. Group most likely to swing behind Angela Rayner for leader, has strong ties with trade unions and associated with 'King of the North' Andy Burnham. Horses head rating: 4/5 AMBITIOUS NEWBIES: Starmerites who swept to power in the 2024 landslide election and are being fasttracked to Cabinet. Include new Labour royalty Hamish Falconer and Georgia Gould. They are loyal - but ambitious. Horses head rating: 1/5 THE BLAIRITES: Devotees of Tony Blair and his brand of New Labour politics, they are pro business and back market reforms in the public sector. Includes Wes Streeting and Pat McFadden - both big players in Keir's government. Horses head rating: 1/5 REDWALLERS / BLUE LABOUR: Straight-talking faction representing Labour's old industrial heartlands of the North and Midlands. Want tougher immigration policies, a crime crackdown and investment in blue collar jobs. Include Jo White, Jonathan Hinder and Gareth Snell. Impatient for change and not afraid to rebel. Horses head rating: 3/5
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Suspended Labour MP: It's insulting and contemptuous to call me a k---head
A suspended Labour MP has said it is 'insulting' to be accused of 'k---headery'. Rachael Maskell was one of four Labour MPs stripped of the party whip on Wednesday as Sir Keir Starmer punished rebels who voted against his flagship welfare reforms. A Government source told The Times some MPs would be suspended for 'persistent k---headery' and rebelling against Downing Street. But Ms Maskell told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: 'I don't even know what that means but I think it is really insulting. 'I am here trying to do a professional job on behalf of people that desperately need a voice. 'And if that is the contempt by which I and my colleagues are treated, let alone my constituents, I find that really insulting and I hope that is withdrawn.' The disciplinary move by the Prime Minister means the four MPs will now sit in the House of Commons as independents, raising questions about their long-term futures. Jeremy Corbyn, the former Labour leader, is in the process of setting up a new Left-wing party which he says will provide a 'real alternative'. But Ms Maskell, who served on Mr Corbyn's front bench as shadow environment secretary in 2016-7, categorically ruled out joining the new party as she declared she was 'Labour through and through'. Asked whether she would consider the move, she replied: 'No, no, no. I am Labour through and through. I support the Labour Party. I have been a member for so long, walked the streets, knocked the doors all those years and of course I want to see a Labour Government really succeed. 'I really hope from this process, yes there will be reflection over the summer, but also learning. 'And there needs to be a better reach out to backbenchers to ensure that we are the safeguards of the Government, ensuring that the Government do well.' Ms Maskell was one of the most prominent critics of Sir Keir's original welfare reforms and tabled an amendment which would have killed the legislation. A Labour revolt over the welfare bill extended to 127 MPs at one point, forcing the Government to cave in on its planned cuts to disability benefits, wiping away all of the planned £4.6bn of savings. Ms Maskell rejected the suggestion that she had been a 'ringleader' of the rebellion. But he signalled she does not intend to change her behaviour in terms of speaking out against the Government. The York Central MP said it was 'not about my behaviour'. Told that Sir Keir's decision to withdraw the whip was precisely because of her behaviour and asked again if she intended to change her approach, she replied: 'I will continue to advocate for my constituents, of course.' The other three MPs who lost the whip were Neil Duncan-Jordan, Chris Hinchliff and Brian Leishman. A further three welfare rebels – Dr Rosena Allin-Khan, Bell Ribeiro-Addy and Mohammad Yasin – were also punished as they lost their trade envoy roles. The punishment was widely seen as an attempt by Sir Keir to reassert his authority after the welfare revolt struck a hammer blow to his premiership.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Labour minister Jess Phillips says rebel MPs right to be punished for ‘slagging off own government'
A government minister has told Labour MPs punished for voting against welfare reforms that they have only themselves to blame in the escalating rebels row. Keir Starmer suspended Rachael Maskell, Neil Duncan-Jordan, Brian Leishman and Chris Hinchliff on Wednesday after the four rebels voted against the government's flagship benefits bill earlier this month. Responding to controversy over the prime minister's decision, home office minister Jess Phillips said on Thursday: 'I disagree often with directions that are going on and I spend time working with colleagues on the back and front benches ensuring that we discuss these things. 'Constantly taking to the airwaves and slagging off your own government – I have to say: what did you think was going to happen?' There had to be a level of party discipline for the government to function, Ms Phillips, who is the minister for safeguarding and violence against women and girls, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. Government minister Jess Phillips has told Labour MPs punished for voting against welfare reforms that they have only themselves to blame in the escalating rebels row (House of Commons) The four MPs all voted against the government over the welfare reform legislation, but party sources said the decision to suspend the whip was taken as a result of persistent breaches of discipline rather than a single rebellion. Speaking to Sky News, Ms Phillips said: 'We were elected as a team under a banner and under a manifesto, and we have to seek to work together, and if you are acting in a manner that is to undermine the ability of the government to deliver those things, I don't know what you expect.' Referring to a description of the rebels by an unnamed source in The Times, she told Sky News: 'I didn't call it persistent knob-headery, but that's the way that it's been termed by some.' Ms Maskell, who spearheaded plans to halt the government's welfare reforms, hit out at Sir Keir's attempt to assert his authority over the party, saying he was wrong to carry out a purge of persistent rebels. Labour MP Rachael Maskell spearheaded plans to halt the government's welfare reforms (PA Archive) The York Central MP said: 'On this occasion, I don't think he's got it right.' Speaking to the BBC, she added: 'I really hope from this process there will be reflection over the summer, but also learning. There needs to be a better reach-out to backbenchers to ensure that we are the safeguards of our government.' Meanwhile, Sir Keir faced a fresh challenge to his authority when senior left-winger Diane Abbott said she had no regrets about comments on racism that led to her being suspended from Labour for a year. Diane Abbott has said she has no regrets about comments on racism that led to her being suspended from Labour for a year (PA Archive) The Hackney North and Stoke Newington MP was disciplined for saying in 2023 that people of colour experienced racism 'all their lives' and in a different way to Jewish people, Irish people and Travellers. Despite withdrawing the remarks at the time, she was suspended from the Labour party after Sir Keir said her comments were antisemitic. In a new intervention, Ms Abbott, who was subsequently readmitted to Labour, said she does not regret her remarks and stands by her argument. She told the BBC: 'Clearly, there must be a difference between racism which is about colour and other types of racism because you can see a Traveller or a Jewish person walking down the street, you don't know.'
