Russell Brown became a Member of the Scottish Affairs Select committee in 1999, and left the committee after the 2001 general election. He was made a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Leader of the House of Lords, Gareth Wyn Williams of Mostyn in 2002. When Williams died in 2003, he continued in the same position with his successor Valerie Amos. Brown resigned from the government in 2003 in protest at the proposed military intervention in Iraq, stepping down from his position as parliamentary aide to Lord Mostyn, leader of the House of Lords. Brown subsequently "voted against saying that the case for war against Iraq has not yet been established" and was absent for the vote to declare war.