The prime minister has withdrawn the whip from four Labour MPs who voted against the government’s welfare reforms.
The Labour leader has suspended Rachael Maskell, Brian Leishman, Neil Duncan-Jordan and Chris Hinchliff.
All four were part of a wider 47-strong rebellion earlier this month.
Leishman, Duncan-Jordan, and Hinchliff were first elected at last year’s election. Rachael Maskell has been the MP for York since 2015.
As well as the four suspended MPs, ITV News understands three MPs, Dr Rosena Allin Khan, Bell Ribeiro-Addy and Mohammed Yasin, have all had their roles as trade envoys removed.
All three MPs were among the 47 welfare rebels last month.
Speaking on Thursday morning, government minister Jess Phillips defended the PM and said "we have to act as a team" when asked about the four MPs’ expulsion from the party.
"The idea that somehow they care more about their constituents than others is something I would heavily push back on."
"There were 40 Labour members of parliament who voted against the government on the welfare bill and only four people have lost the whip – it’s nothing to do with welfare.
"From what I can read, just like everyone else, is that there’s been a persistent problem of them speaking persistently against the government."
She added: "The idea that we can all just be going off and saying whatever we want – that’s not how you govern."
Phillips rebelled against the Labour Party when they were in opposition in 2023 over a vote on Gaza and Keir Starmer’s stance on a ceasefire.
Saying at the time it had been "one of the toughest" weeks in politics as she resigned her shadow cabinet role.
• Subscribe to ITV News on YouTube: http://bit.ly/2lOHmNj
• Get breaking news and more stories at http://www.itv.com/news
Follow ITV News on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@itvnews?lang=en
Follow ITV News on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itvnews/
Follow ITV News on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/itvnews/
Follow ITV News on X: https://twitter.com/itvnews
