“It is unconscionable that other colleagues remain suspended for voting with their conscience against cuts to disability benefits, along with the longest serving Black MP Diane Abbott, while others retain the whip, like Lord Mandelson.”
Apsana Begum MP issued the following statement after she and her Parliamentary colleague John McDonnell were readmitted to the Parliamentary Labour Party, having been suspended since voting to abolish the two-child cap last July.
After over 14 months, I have had the Labour whip restored, which was removed for voting with my conscience to scrap the two-child limit.
I was never told why my suspension was extended and only learned about it through a news article.
I want to be clear: I will continue to oppose the two-child limit at every opportunity.
Child poverty is a matter of conscience for me: 44.6% of children in my constituency live in poverty. Calls to scrap the policy are growing, from the Children’s Commissioner to members of the Government’s own Child Poverty Tasktorce.
Likewise, I will continue to oppose austerity, welfare cuts, and the ongoing dispossession and oppression of the Palestinian people. I will continue to stand for investment in our public services, the strengthening of workers’ rights, trade union freedoms, and human rights and civil liberties – as my constituents elected me to do.
It is unconscionable that other colleagues remain suspended for voting with their conscience against cuts to disability benefits, along with the longest serving Black MP Diane Abbott, while others retain the whip, like Lord Mandelson.
All I have ever wanted is the chance to serve safely and freely with equal opportunity as an MP.
Yet, I continue to face ongoing harassment, including at the last General Election when my ex-husband stood against me. This followed years of engaging in the Party’s complaints processes about his conduct towards me, a brutal eight-day trial in 2021, and the illegitimate trigger process conducted whilst I was certified off sick. There is still a long way to go.
All political parties have a duty to ensure it is an inclusive, democratic and safe environment.
I firmly believe that new duties must be placed on all political parties and employers to ensure that survivors of abuse are not exposed to further harassment in their roles. The Labour Party can and must take action.
When I stood for re-election, I said I would continue to stand up for the people of Poplar and Limehouse, championing explicitly anti-imperialist and socialist policies and driven by a diverse, people-powered movement.
I will continue to do so in this vein – no matter what.
- Apsana Begum is the Member of Parliament for Poplar and Limehouse- you can follow her on Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram and TikTok.
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Two-child policy was a mistake. It must go. Well said, Apsana.