The rebel Labour MP, Mr Dennis Canavan, was officially expelled from the British Labour Party yesterday and lost the party whip in the House of Commons. This follows his decision to stand as an independent candidate for the Scottish Parliament.
The move was immediately condemned by the Tory spokesman on constitutional affairs, Mr Liam Fox. He said Mr Canavan's expulsion was a result of Labour's obsession with "controlling every thought, word and action of Labour MPs".
Mr Canavan's rift with the party became final this week when he handed in his nomination papers at Falkirk's Municipal Buildings on Wednesday, confirming that he was standing for election as the "Member of Parliament for Falkirk West".
He said his decision was prompted by Labour's failure to include him on its list of official candidates. But as a committed hard-left MP he has found little support within the party hierarchy under New Labour.
It had been thought that Mr Canavan's expulsion might have come after the nominations for the Scottish Parliament election closed on April 13th. But after his actions on Wednesday the party decided to move swiftly to confirm his removal yesterday.
"It was absolutely clear what Mr Canavan was doing after he submitted his papers," a party spokesman said. "We have not expelled him, he has expelled himself. We have simply confirmed his decision to him in writing.
"He was written to yesterday and that was confirmed to him. The letter told him that under the rules of the Labour Party his decision means he is ineligible to continue being a member of Labour."
The spokesman denied Mr Canavan was expelled because of his political views, "but because he has decided to stand against the party in an election. He has therefore expelled himself - he knew what the rules were."
Meanwhile the Labour MP for Glasgow Govan, Mr Mohammed Sarwar, who was acquitted this week on charges relating to bribery and vote-rigging, has had his suspension from party membership lifted, a Labour spokesman confirmed last night.
The suspension was imposed shortly after the 1997 general election, when the charges first came to light.
Earlier, Mr Sarwar had emerged from a meeting with Labour officials in Glasgow saying he had had a "very constructive, positive and fruitful" discussion.
He said a statement on his future would be issued soon.