During Wednesday's prime minister question time, Keir Starmer avoided questions regarding the Commons rebellion on the two-child benefit limit issue proposed by Scottish National Party MPs (SNP). Instead, he highlighted the SNP's efforts concerning child poverty rates.
The former shadow chancellor John McDonnell and a group of seven Labour backbenchers were stripped of their party whip for six months after supporting an SNP amendment to the king’s speech, which resulted in suspension for Rebecca Long-Bailey, Apsana Begum, Richard Burgon, Ian Byrne, Imran Hussain and Zarah Sultana.
In a statement on Wednesday, Long-Bailey expressed her sadness regarding losing the whip but explained that she felt compelled to voice her constituents' concerns about child poverty. She reaffirmed her commitment to work with the government in addressing this issue.
When asked by Rishi Sunak (the current chancellor) and Stephen Flynn, SNP’s Westminster leader, Starmer first praised Gordon Brown's Labour administration for lifting millions of children out of poverty while defending his party's stance on the two-child benefit limit.
In response to questions from Pete Wishart (SNP MP) and later in a press conference with reporters, Starmer continued discussing child poverty statistics and urged SNP members not to lecture the electorate after losing their seats during the recent election. The political spokesperson defended his decision to suspend rebel MPs, stating that they had been consulted about it.
SNP MP Zarah Sultana previously spoke on Good Morning Britain highlighting her belief in taking a stand against child poverty despite facing backlash from some colleagues. The House of Commons voted 363 to 103 to reject the SNP's proposed amendment, which was aimed at removing the two-child benefit limit implemented by George Osborne’s chancellery in 2015.
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