Natalie McGarry has spoken in the House of Commons for the first time since she resigned the SNP whip, amid complaints to police about missing money.

The Glasgow East MP, now an independent, sat on the SNP benches beside Steven Paterson, SNP MP for Stirling, to take part in education questions.

Another six or seven SNP members sat on the two benches in front of Ms McGarry in the chamber who last spoke on November 9 in a debate on the Scotland Bill.

She didn’t receive the same ‘hear, hear’ noises of support other MPs get from colleagues when she stood up but was given some encouragement during her question on Education Maintenance Allowance, when she praised the Scottish Government.

The Glasgow East MP was automatically suspended from the SNP last week after she resigned when it emerged the campaign group she co-founded, Women for Independence, had called in police about unaccounted for cash in the accounts, thought to be up to £30,000.

Ms McGarry is understood to have been in sole control of the organisations PayPal account which received more than £50,000 in donations

Through her lawyer Aamer Anwar, she has since maintained she has done nothing wrong and said she is available and willing to speak to the police.

It has since been reported that Ms McGarry paid Women for Independence £6000 after she became an MP after she was repeatedly quizzed about the unaccounted for cash.

Ms McGarry criticised the UK Government and the chancellor for cutting EMA and said Scotland was leading the way.

She said: “In Scotland the EMA provides a lifeline of support for talented young people from low income backgrounds. EMA in England is a casualty of austerity obsession”

She asked: “Why hasn’t the minister followed the lead of Scottish Government which will expand the allowance to 12,000 more students.”

Education Minister Sam Gyimah, jokingly congratulated the MP on her recent engagement, to Glasgow Tory councillor David Meikle.

He said: “I didn’t think these things could happen, it shows we are better together.”

Mr Gyimah said the record north of the border on attainment was not a benchmark.

He said: “Children from the 20% most deprived areas are less likely to achieve three A grades at Higher that their least affluent peers.

“There are no lessons to take from the Scottish Government on narrowing the attainment gap.”