​​​​​​​LONDON

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer suspended four Labour MPs on Wednesday following repeated breaches of party discipline, after they voted against the government’s welfare reform bill earlier this month.

Neil Duncan-Jordan, Brian Leishman, Chris Hinchliff, and Rachael Maskell have all had the Labour whip removed, meaning they will now sit as independents in the House of Commons.

The decision follows their roles in a significant backbench rebellion that saw 47 Labour MPs oppose the proposed welfare cuts.

The rebellion is seen as a blow to Keir’s authority, which has already been strained by recent policy reversals, including the government’s decision to restore the winter fuel allowance for millions of pensioners.

Three other Labour MPs -- Rosena Allin Khan, Bell Ribeiro-Addy, and Mohammed Yasin -- have been stripped of their trade envoy roles for voting against the bill.

Dozens of Labour MPs voiced strong opposition to plans to cut benefits for disabled and sick individuals, part of a wider effort to reduce welfare spending by £5 billion ($6.7 billion) annually by the end of the decade.

At one point, more than 120 Labour MPs threatened to block the legislation, raising the possibility of a defeat for the government.

In response, ministers offered major concessions to appease the rebels, and a watered-down version of the bill eventually passed in the Commons.

Starmer has sought to enforce stricter party discipline since coming to power. Earlier in the parliamentary term, seven Labour MPs were suspended after voting against the government’s stance on scrapping the two-child benefit cap.

Among them was Zarah Sultana, who has since left the Labour Party. She recently announced plans to launch a new political party alongside former Labour leader and now independent MP Jeremy Corbyn.​​​​​​​