These are the 11 Greater Manchester councillors suspended amid the Labour WhatsApp scandal

These are the 11 Greater Manchester councillors suspended amid the Labour WhatsApp scandal. The local politicians - in Tameside and Stockport - were told today their party membership has been suspended while an investigation takes place into the 'Trigger Me Timbers' group.

Leaked messages surfaced last weekend, leading to Gorton and Denton MP Andrew Gwynne being sacked as a junior health minister and suspended from the party. Burnley MP Oliver Ryan - a former Tameside councillor who was a member of the group - was later suspended by the party.

Denton South councillors Claire Reid, Jack Naylor and George Newton stepped down from cabinet positions at Tameside council. They are among 11 Greater Manchester councillors to have now been suspended by Labour, with action taken against colleagues over the border in Stockport.

Mr Gwynne is alleged to have made anti-Semitic slights and joked about a pensioner dying before an election after she raised concerns about bin collections. In a statement shared on X after the claims, Mr Gwynne said: "I deeply regret my badly misjudged comments and apologise for any offense I've caused."

A source inside the group said there were up to 20 members who used it mainly to discuss 'mundane' topics related to political campaigning. While some of the messages were 'unacceptable', they said 'most of it was humour between friends' and not meant in a hurtful way.

"This was not something that happened a lot, the reality was the group was just mundane everyday chat between friends who are politicians," the source said. "There was some stuff that was mocking people, but it was nothing personal. Some of the stuff said was over the top... people were a bit giddy and got carried away. Most of it was