Jared O’Mara has been suspended by the Labour Party after he was revealed to have posted homophobic and sexist comments online.
The Sheffield Hallam MP, who ousted Nick Clegg at the snap election, also faced claims he called a constituent an “ugly bitch” just months before his election.
Senior Labour MPs, including Lucy Powell and Lisa Nandy, called for his suspension on Tuesday evening.
Women and equalities minister Justine Greening also wrote to Jeremy Corbyn to ask whether he would remove the whip from O’Mara, who said he was “deeply ashamed” after derogatory comments he posted online were unearthed by the Guido Fawkes website.
In them, he made rape jokes, referred to teenage girls as “sexy little slags” and gay people as “fudge packers”.
Sophie Evans, who said she met O’Mara on a dating app last year, alleged he verbally abused her in a club in March – an allegation the MP has denied.
The Labour leadership had been under increasing pressure to take decisive action ahead of Prime Ministers’ Questions in the Commons on Wednesday afternoon.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell confirmed O’Mara’s suspension less than an hour before the session was due to begin.
He told BBC News: “A full investigation will be carried out by the Labour Party and then as result a final decision will be made about his future.”
Reacting to the news on BBC Radio 5 live, shadow education minister Tracy Brabin agreed with her party’s decision.
“That’s probably a wise move and we’ll see what comes out of the investigation,” she said.
Brabin added that the move shows “we are” doing something.
Before the news broke, she had described the actions of O’Mara as “unpleasant and unacceptable”, adding the whole episode “doesn’t look fantastic”.
Tory MP Mims Davies, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Women in Parliament, said: “Totally right that the whip has been suspended from Jared O’Mara for his vile homophobic and sexist comments – but why on earth has it taken so long?
“Jeremy Corbyn has for too long turned a blind eye to this kind of behaviour in the Labour Party.
“Unless you call it out, you’re part of the problem.”
Also reacting to the news, her Conservative colleague Suella Fernandez said: “A suspension is more than words, and that is the appropriate course at this stage. This probably is the appropriate course of action right now.”
Another Tory MP, Nadine Dorries, tweeted shadow education secretary Angela Rayner to ask if she really believed O’Mara was a reformed character, after she told the BBC on Tuesday she was “happy” to sit on the Labour benches alongside him.
The Lib Dems said the suspension was “better late than never” but said Labour should have taken swift action on Tuesday, when the investigation was first launched.