LEFT MPs Apsana Begum and John McDonnell had the Labour whip restored in an eve-of-conference indication of the government’s weakening position.

New chief whip Jonathan Reynolds told the pair that they could be readmitted to the parliamentary Labour Party 14 months after they were suspended for voting against the continuation of the two-child benefit cap.

Four other Labour MPs suspended at the same time had the whip returned earlier this year while a fifth, Zarah Sultana, has since left the party.

It is understood that Ms Begum and Mr McDonnell were not asked to make any special commitments about their future conduct.

Ms Begum said: “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 per cent of children in my constituency live in poverty.

“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.

“When I stood for re-election, I said I would continue to stand up for the people of Poplar & Limehouse, championing explicitly anti-imperialist and socialist policies and driven by a diverse people-powered movement. I will continue to do so.”

And Mr McDonnell said he hoped the move was “a signal the government has decided to scrap the cap.”

Four other Labour MPs remain suspended for opposing the planned welfare benefit cuts while Ms Abbott has been excluded for speaking out about her experiences of racism.