The Labour Deputy Leader Lucy Powell claimed things had changed in the past 20 years, and that the convicted rapist would have been ‘stopped in his tracks sooner’ now
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Lucy Powell has told women to “come forward” and that they will be believed after Russell Brand was convicted for rape and sexual assault.
The Labour Deputy Leader claimed things had changed in the past 20 years, and that the convicted rapist would have been “stopped in his tracks sooner” now. Brand, 51, was jailed for 10-and-a-half years on Monday for raping one of his fans and sexually assaulting three TV and radio workers during his rise to international fame.
Discussing the conviction on Sky News, Ms Powell said: “What I would say to women now, off the back of that, is do come forward when these things happen to you. You will be supported. You will be believed. You will be taken seriously.
“Because actually, had we had an environment and a culture, 15 years ago, 20 years ago, where women felt that, then he would have been stopped in his tracks sooner and we would have had less victims as a consequence.”
The Education Secretary also expressed “regret” at Ed Miliband’s 2015 general election interview with Brand, saying it took place in a “different era” before the disgraced comedian’s predatory sexual behaviour had been exposed.
Mr Miliband, then the Labour leader, appeared on Brand’s online show The Trews as part of his doomed bid to become PM.
Ms Powell said: “It was a long time ago, obviously and had I or Ed Miliband or anybody at the time had any sense at all that this was someone who was a sexual predator, who was involved in these sorts of crimes.
“I think like anybody who would have paid to go to his show, would have watched him on TV, who was his employer at the time, who had interactions with him – anybody, including those of us who were involved in that at the time – would look back and really regret that, knowing today what we now know.
“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.”
