Lucy Powell Says She Regrets Helping Arrange Russell Brand’s 2015 Ed Miliband Interview

Lucy Powell says she looks back with regret on her part in arranging a 2015 campaign interview between Russell Brand and then-Labour leader Ed Miliband. Powell, who was Labour’s vice-chairman for the election campaign, made the comments while speaking to broadcasters after Brand’s sentencing, according to the article. The Cabinet minister said she believed there had been no indication at the time that Brand was a sexual predator. “It was a long time ago,” she said, adding that she, Miliband and others involved would regret the decision in light of what is now known. Powell also argued that the political team was operating before today’s social-media environment made it easier to search for allegations and past controversies. Her explanation drew criticism from Conservative politicians, who argued Brand’s conduct had already been visible. The article notes that before the interview, Brand had lost his BBC Radio 2 programme after leaving lewd messages on actor Andrew Sachs’s answerphone, and had previously been fired by XFM for reading pornography on air. He had also written about his relationships in an autobiography. Miliband appeared on Brand’s online programme, The Trews, as Labour sought to reach younger voters ahead of the 2015 election. Powell said Brand was then a prominent public figure who had been given platforms by major broadcasters and entertainment companies. She added that, had anyone involved known of the accusations and crimes described today, the interview would not have gone ahead. The article reports that Brand was sentenced to ten-and-a-half years in prison for rape and sexual assaults. Powell’s remarks have renewed questions about the judgment behind the campaign appearance and about what political figures could reasonably have known at the time.