Russell Brand Rips UK Government's Bid To End Jury Trials After He Was Charged With New Sex Offences

Russell Brand has slammed the British government's proposal to scale back on the use of jury trials, except for serious charges like rape and murder.

The comedian continues to endure mounting legal troubles as he has now been hit with two additional charges of rape and sexual assault.

The new charges came after Russell Brand made an appearance at Turning Point USA's event, where he made some critical comments about his ex-wife, Katy Perry's new beau, Justin Trudeau.

Brand launched a scathing attack on the British government's proposed plan to limit the use of jury trials, except when it's for more serious charges.

In a 16-minute video shared to his over 6 million subscribers on YouTube, the outspoken political commentator weighed in on the proposal and titled it, "The UK Just Took A Very Dark Turn."

"Britain is scrapping trial by jury. Luckily, I don't know anyone who's got a trial by jury," he began, before feigning a surprise look.

The comedian went further to say, "Got a bit of backlog? Stop arresting people for stuff they've not done. Stop creating pretend, crazy, mad crimes in order to legitimise banging people up in jail because you can't control them."

"And then to compound the problem, saying the old backlog, 'We ain't get time for jury trials because of the old backlog,'" he added. "It would be quicker if you just caught people at the moment of birth."

Brand's comment came in response to Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary David Lammy's announcement on how the government would only reserve jury trials for serious charges like rape and murder, as well as those with a likely sentence above three years.

This comes in a bid to reduce the Crown Court backlog of cases. However, some lawmakers have threatened to fight the plans.

According to the Daily Mail, Karl Turner, the MP for Hull East, alongside 38 other Labor backbenchers, wrote to Keir Starmer urging him to reconsider.

"Many more MPs, not on this letter, have said they will rebel if necessary," Mr. Turner wrote on social media, revealing the text of the letter.

In the letter, they branded the proposal as "an ineffective way of dealing with the crippling backlog in cases in our criminal justice system," with the Mother of the House of Commons, Diane Abbott, also appending her signature to it.

According to the news outlet, they also noted that there's a "growing number of our colleagues who are not prepared to support these proposals" when it reaches the House of Commons.

"The drastic restriction of the right to trial by jury is not a silver bullet. To limit a fundamental right for what will make a marginal difference to the backlog, if any, is madness and will cause more problems than it solves," the letter added.

As reported by The Blast, Brand was recently slammed with two new charges of rape and sexual assault relating to two women.

This worsens things for the controversial comic as he was already facing one count each of rape, indecent assault, and oral rape, as well as two counts of sexual assault, relating to four separate women.

The Officer in charge of Brand's investigation, Met Dept Chief Insp Tariq Farooqi, said on Tuesday: "The women who have made reports, including those connected to the two new charges, continue to receive support from specially trained officers."

"The Met's investigation remains ongoing, and detectives urge anyone affected by this case, or anyone with information, to come forward and speak with police," he added.

Brand has consistently denied all allegations, maintaining that his past relationships were always consensual.

In April, he addressed the five initial charges against him, saying, "What I never was was a rapist. I've never engaged in nonconsensual activity."

Brand continued, "I'm now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I'm incredibly grateful for that."

The former actor appeared in court in May and pleaded not guilty to the previous five counts he faced and is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on January 20, 2026, in relation to the two new charges.

Away from his legal troubles, the 50-year-old recently made headlines for his comment about his ex-wife Katy Perry's new relationship with former Canadian leader Justin Trudeau.

While speaking on stage at a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix last Thursday, Brand made sure to tell attendees that he isn't happy with her choice, calling Trudeau a "globalist stooge."

"Look, Katy Perry, I was married to her. I love her still, and I'm glad that her mom's in the room to hear me say this, but look, I was OK with Orlando Bloom, but Justin Trudeau? C'mon, man. Don't put me in a category with that guy. That globalist stooge," Brand said, per The Blast.

The pair got married in 2010 after meeting on the set of "Get Him to the Greek" a year before. However, their marriage ended two years later.