Labour Party faces Commons vote divide over welfare

Helen Goodman claimed the government's Bill would push children into poverty

The Labour Party faces an open split over the government's planned cuts to benefits spending after one of its MPs tabled an amendment to the legislation.

Former shadow welfare minister Helen Goodman made the move without the blessing of interim party leader Harriet Harman.

Ms Goodman says 40 MPs back her attempt to reject the Welfare Bill.

Ms Harman has said that if the party "opposed everything" it would "succeed on nothing".

Earlier this week, she said Labour had to recognise that one of the reasons it lost the general election was because it was not trusted on welfare spending.

She has urged the party to abstain on the Welfare Reform Bill, warning against "blanket opposition" to reform.

Harriet Harman has warned against "blanket opposition"

BBC political correspondent Chris Mason said: "There is now the prospect of the acting Labour leader either being forced to back down in the face of opposition from her own side, or Labour being divided in a Commons vote."

A Labour Party spokesman said it would make its intentions clear "fairly shortly".

Bishop Auckland MP Ms Goodman, who has left Labour's front bench to join the Treasury select committee, had announced the move on Twitter, writing: "With 40 other MPs I've put down a motion to reject Tory Welfare bill, because it will push more children esp in big families into poverty."

Other Labour MPs wrote of their support on Twitter, with Warrington North's Helen Jones tweeting: "Glad so many MPs are supporting our motion to reject Tory Welfare Bill, which will push families on low wages further into poverty."