UK
Ed Miliband: profanity-prone Gordon Brown’s office was known as ‘Planet F---’

Gabriella Swerling
Sun, 28 January 2024 

Ed Miliband also spoke of his relationship with his brother David after he beat him in the leadership race in 2010 - OLI SCARFF/AFP

Sir Tony Blair’s team dubbed Gordon Brown’s office “Planet F---” because he swore so much, Ed Miliband has claimed.

The former Labour Party leader from 2010 to 2015, Mr Miliband, 54, has been the shadow secretary of state for energy security and net zero since 2021. In the early 2000s, he worked as a political aide at the Treasury. Recalling his experience in an interview with The Sunday Times Magazine, he said: “I was the go-between between the two sides – Gordon Brown’s office and Sir Tony Blair’s office.

Ed Miliband (back) worked as a political aide to the Treasury under Gordon Brown (front) in the early 2000s - AFP

“But Blair’s office had a rude name for me.” Asked what it was, he said: “Well, Gordon used to swear a lot. So Tony’s team called me the ‘emissary from the Planet F---’.”


Sir Tony was prime minister from 1997 to 2007, succeeded by Mr Brown, who served from 2007 to 2010. After Labour was defeated at the 2010 general election, Mr Brown resigned and Mr Miliband was elected to replace him.

He resigned in 2015 following the party’s defeat in the general election, and was succeeded by Jeremy Corbyn later that year.

Under the so-called Blair-Brown deal, it was widely reported that the pair struck an agreement in 1994 while they were shadow home secretary and shadow chancellor of the exchequer, respectively.

Tony Blair (left) and Gordon Brown (right) were reported to have formed a Blair-Brown deal during their time in the shadow cabinet - JOHNNY EGGITT/AFP

It was reported that they agreed Mr Brown would not stand in the forthcoming Labour leadership election, so as to aid Sir Tony’s chance of victory. In return, Sir Tony would appoint Mr Brown chancellor, and grant him unprecedented domestic powers.

In 2010, Andrew Rawnsley, a journalist at The Observer, published The End of the Party, a book claiming that Mr Brown’s abusive behaviour and bad temper left Downing Street staff so frightened that he received a reprimand from the head of the Civil Service.

Mr Brown denied the accusations at the time and a spokesperson said that the “malicious allegations are totally without foundation”.

Gordon Brown has always denied allegations of abusive behaviour and bad-temper during his time in office - ANDREW PARSONS/PA

Mr Miliband also revealed that his relationship with his brother, David, 58, is not “what it was” after he beat him to become Labour leader in 2010 in a controversial election race.

He said that their relationship was healing. “It was incredibly hard, that will be obvious,” he said. “Our relationship is not precisely what it was before the 2010 Labour leadership election, but it is an incredibly close relationship and we love each other very much.”

He added that he does not regret standing as leader, saying: “I had something to say and we needed a new set of ideas for the Labour party and where it was going. I deeply regret losing in 2015, but I don’t regret running for leader.”