Karl Turner MP has Labour whip suspended

GOVERNMENT CRITIC: Karl Turner MP

By Simon Bristow, Co-Editor

Hull East MP Karl Turner has had the Labour whip suspended after becoming an outspoken critic of No 10 and the Government, particularly over plans to limit jury trials.

Mr Turner will continue to represent his constituency but sit as an independent.

In a post on X, the MP said he had not been informed about the suspension by party whips.

“I am being told that I have had the whip suspended but I have not had any notification from the whips about this,” he wrote. “It seems journalists have been told but I have not.”

Mr Turner previously held a number of roles in opposition, including former Shadow Attorney General, Shadow Solicitor General, shadow ministerial roles, and also worked in the whips’ office in opposition, but has not been given a Government post since Labour took power under Sir Keir Starmer in 2024.

He was first elected to the Hull East constituency in 2010, succeeding John Prescott, who had held the seat for 40 years.