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The three Labour MPs facing criminal charges over their expenses claims have been suspended from the party.
David Chaytor, Elliot Morley and Jim Devine are being prosecuted on several counts of false accounting.
A Labour spokesman said they had been "administratively" suspended.
In a statement, Labour said: "The Labour Party's general secretary has ... suspended David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Elliot Morley's membership of the Labour Party in light of the serious allegations against them. They had already been barred from standing for Parliament as Labour candidates.
"The decision follows a formal process which included representations from the Chief Whip and consultations with party officials over the weekend and means the three MPs have been suspended from the whip and cannot attend any Labour Party meetings."
The move came as Tory leader David Cameron sought to outflank Gordon Brown on the expenses issue. Mr Cameron has already withdrawn the Conservative whip from Lord Hanningfield, who is also facing charges of false accounting.
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In a speech on Monday, he hit out at the "disgusting sight" of the Labour MPs claiming parliamentary privilege in an attempt to avoid prosecution for expenses abuses. And he accused the Prime Minister of helping to create the culture at Westminster which led to the expenses scandal and the collapse of public confidence in politics.
Mr Cameron has asked shadow leader of the House Sir George Young to draft a Parliamentary Privilege Act which would clarify the rules and prevent the principle being misused.
The three Labour MPs vowed to put up a robust defence after their charges were detailed by Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer on Friday. They argue that they should have been dealt with by the Commons authorities rather than the police. Mr Starmer said the MPs' lawyers had already indicated they were considering using parliamentary privilege as a defence.
The Prime Minister's spokesman said Mr Brown did not believe that parliamentary privilege was intended to cover issues of this nature. "If it proves necessary, the Government has said that it will legislate to clarify this," the spokesman said. "The Prime Minister's view is very clear - no MP is above the law."
