Diane Abbott and Joani Reid readmitted into Labour after suspensions lifted

DIANE Abbott and Joani Reid have had their suspensions lifted by the Labour Party. Both women are also to be readmitted into the parliamentary party, so they can sit as Labour MPs again. Abbott, the longest-serving female MP in the Commons, was suspended from the Labour Party for a second time last year after repeating comments about racism for which she had previously apologised. More than 35,000 had called on Andy Burnham and chief whip Anneliese Midgely to bring her back into the party, with some Labour MPs also backing the call. READ MORE: Concerns over far-right vigilante groups in Glasgow 'impersonating police officers' Reid, the MP for East Kilbride and Strathaven, had the Labour whip suspended in March after her husband was one of three men arrested by counter-terrorism officers and accused of assisting China's foreign intelligence service. The MP later went on to say that she is "not part of my husband's business activities" and is "not any sort of admirer or apologist for the Chinese Communist party's dictatorship". Reid, who is also the granddaughter of trade unionist Jimmy Reid and served as a councillor in Lewisham for eight years before becoming an MP, wrote on social media following the announcement: "With my membership of the Parliamentary Labour Party restored, I am excited to play a full part in supporting our new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, his government, and in renewing Scottish Labour. "I have never been part of a police investigation, as a suspect or as a witness, and I am pleased that this has now been recognised. "The support I have received from colleagues across the political spectrum, my constituents and my local Labour Party has been steadfast. "I am also deeply grateful to everyone who has stood by me when it was politically easier to distance themselves. You know who you are – thank you." Abbott lost the whip and had a lengthy stint sitting as an independent after she suggested in 2023 that Jewish, Irish and Traveller people experience prejudice, but not racism. She apologised for those remarks at the time and was eventually readmitted to the party just in time to stand as a Labour candidate in the 2024 General Election. But in a BBC interview released in July last year, she said she did not regret the incident. Abbott entered Parliament in 1987 and holds the honorary title of Mother of the House. Her suspension came in the same week that Starmer carried out a purge of troublesome backbenchers in a bid to assert authority over the party. READ MORE: 'We're peaceful': Palestine Action protesters on why they risk arrest In a statement post on Twitter/X, the MP for Hackney North & Stoke Newington said: “Today, following a process conducted in line with party rules and approved by the independent review process I have been readmitted to the Labour party. “I have been issued with a formal warning for a tweet I previously posted. By inadvertently referring to the Israeli Defence Force as the ‘Jewish Defence Force’, I used wording that conflates the actions of the state of Israel with the Jewish community. I am deeply sorry for any hurt caused by that conflation and apologise for any hurt caused by it. “I have been and remain a lifelong anti-racist and remain deeply committed to opposing racism in all its forms.”