David Walliams booted out of the Labour Party - as comedian's former endorsement of Andy Burnham's leadership comes to light

David Walliams has been suspended as a Labour Party member this afternoon, shortly after he was accused of sexual misconduct.The Daily Mail understands that the comedian was swiftly booted out of the party, following the newly published allegations about his conduct.Walliams was today unmasked as the celebrity who sought an injunction to secure anonymity following accusations that he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old and preyed on multiple teenage girls.He has often spoken out in support of Labour, including backing Andy Burnham in his 2015 attempt to secure the party leadership.Taking to X in July 2015, he posted: 'I first met @andyburnhammp 10 years ago & I was so impressed by him, I told him then that he would be #Labour Leader one day. #andy4leader.'Earlier today Mr Burnham's official spokesman told journalists: 'They are clearly deeply troubling allegations and the Government will doubtless respond to them in the course of the day.'The pair met as supporters of the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young.At the time, Mr Burnham said: 'I'm a big fan of David and feel honoured to have his support for my campaign to put Labour back in touch with millions of disillusioned voters.' David Walliams's tweet in support of Andy Burnham's 2015 leadership campaign Mr Walliams also posted a photo of him with top Labour MP Jess Phillips, branding her 'my hero' Mr Walliams dressed as one of his characters from Little Britain, with former Labour Chancellor Alistair Darling at his annual Christmas party in No11 Downing StreetIn 2019, Mr Walliams posted a photo of him with top Labour MP Jess Phillips, whom he described as his 'hero', adding she 'should be Prime Minister'.While Labour was unable to say how long Mr Walliams has been a member of the party, interviews from 2010 saw him describing himself as 'a great fan of Tony Blair', claiming that the former premier 'sent me a letter before I swam the Channel to wish me luck'.According to 2005 reports, Mr Walliams and his Little Britain comedy partner Matt Lucas turned Mr Blair down for a cameo in the hit BBC comedy over concerns it would have left them open to accusations of political bias.Mr Walliams' links to Labour also include his attendance at Reigate Grammar School, Sir Keir Starmer's alma mater, though he clarified in an appearance on The One Show last year that they did not meet or overlap as pupils.While the comedian's politics have consistently supported the Labour Party, Mr Walliams received an approving message from David Cameron in 2016, when he came out to support the Remain side of the EU referendum.Mr Cameron said it was 'great to see David Walliams is voting Remain', alongside a slew of other celebrity endorsements for his side of the campaign.The enormously successful children's author also teamed up with the then-Tory education secretary, Nicky Morgan, to announce plans to make Britain's youngsters 'the most literate in Europe'.Labour's suspension of Mr Walliams's membership came as Labour attempted to distance itself from Russell Brand, who played a pivotal role in the party's 2015 General Election campaign. Education Secretary Lucy Powell this morning sparked backlash after insisting there were no warning signs about Mr Brand before his notorious 2015 interview with the party's then-leader. She admitted she 'regrets' helping to set up the publicity stunt, but then argued there was no way of vetting the comedian because the 'social media age' had not happened. By the time the interview took place, Brand had already lost his BBC Radio 2 show for leaving a series of lewd messages on actor Andrew Sachs's answerphone about a romantic liaison with his granddaughter.Asked about her role in setting up the interview, Ms Powell said: 'Look, we were in very different times. We weren't in the social media age at the time, so where you could maybe search things up and see allegations or things about somebody at the time.'And, as I say, if there was any suggestion at all, we were dealing with someone who was a known sexual predator at the time then, of course, no one would have done that.'But as I say, he was a well-known public figure. Lots of people, from Hollywood to the BBC to many others, gave this person a very, very powerful platform.'We didn't know at the time and unfortunately, maybe had people come forward or felt able to… it was a different era.'Mrs Powell's Tory opposite, Laura Trott, this morning said that Labour's claim they 'didn't know' about Mr Brand's behaviour 'simply doesn't wash'.