Steve Reed dismisses Labour rebels as 'usual suspects' ahead of final PMQs of parliamentary session

Steve Reed has dismissed 15 Labour MPs who voted with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch's motion calling for Keir Starmer to be referred to the privileges committee as "usual suspects". The housing secretary played down the prospect of the rebels having the whip withdrawn, saying 99% of Labour MPs are united with the prime minister.

Originally Keir Starmer was hoping that there would not be a need for PMQs today, but it will definitely be the last of the 2024-26 parliamentary session. It will be a chance for Starmer to reflect on all the legislation passed.

There is some relief that the government won the vote on Badenoch's call for Starmer to be referred to the privileges committee with ease. Some 53 Labour MPs did not take part in the division last night – some because they were authorised to be away, others because they were abstaining deliberately because they did not want to vote against the motion – but only 15 voted with Badenoch.

At the start of this session of parliament, Starmer removed the whip from seven Labour MPs who voted for an SNP amendment to the king's speech motion calling for the two-child benefit cap to be abolished. Subsequently this was seen as an overreaction (not least because abolishing the cap later became government policy).

In an interview this morning, Steve Reed told Times Radio: "There was a handful of usual suspects who did what they tend to do. I'm not in charge of discipline, I'm not too bothered about them to be honest."

And he told Sky News: "You've got a handful of usual suspects that will repeatedly vote against the government. They're not going to distract us. You know, we've got the renters' rights reforms coming in this Friday, which gives renters, people who rent their home, the biggest increase in protections and rights that we've had for a generation. That is what voters want us to focus on, not a handful of people that go off and don't play the team game with the rest of us. Ninety nine percent of us are united with the prime minister so that we can focus on the issues that matter."

Reed's maths is a bit off; the 15 rebels amount to about 4% of the PLP, not 1%. But the point is clear.

The agenda for the day shows Keir Starmer facing Kemi Badenoch at PMQs at noon, followed by parliament proroguing with a ceremony in the House of Lords at 1.15pm. Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, will hold a press conference at 2pm on plans to "keep Trump, Musk and Putin out of our politics".

Labour MPs were also cheered by Darren Jones' speech winding up the debate on the privileges committee motion.