Has anyone ever watched ‘Look Who’s Back’?
It’s a rather wacky film. It takes Adolf Hitler, resurrects him, and puts him in modern day Germany. In between the odd heel click and Sieg Heil, the former Fuhrer attempts to bring the masses of the 21st century round to his way of thinking. At one point, he even speaks to a group of neo-Nazis, but is left disappointed when he discovers they are but a hub of basement-dwelling incels.
By the end of the film, the people of Berlin are left feeling as though the Nazis are on the way back – a worrying thought indeed.
A worrying thought, yes, but also, one would think, an outlandish one. Modern society does well to stamp out Nazism and extremist ideology wherever it shows its head. Imagine my surprise, then, when I discover that Joshua Bonehill-Paine, a former neo-Nazi who has since become a counter-extremism lecturer, has been allowed to stand for the Tories in Somerset.
Speaking yesterday, Kemi Badenoch doubled down on her decision to let him stand, reiterating that the Conservatives believe in “second chances” and that Bonehill-Paine, despite having issues in the past, has since been rehabilitated, and now teaches about the problems of antisemitism up and down the country.
Now, I believe in second chances, and I believe in rehabilitation. I believe that if an individual does their time and has proven themselves to be a reformed individual, then they should be afforded the same opportunities as others. It’s a fairly straightforward argument, given that the alternative is one of eternal punishment, but an important one nonetheless.
Rehabilitation is not some monolithic concept, however, and herein lies the rub.
Bonehill-Paine’s record is far from one of perfection. In 2015 he was jailed for a string of antisemitic posts, having been found guilty of inciting racial hatred. He was later convicted for racially harassing Luciana Berger, who now sits as a Labour Peer in the House of Lords.
Combine this with his convictions for assaulting a police officer and burglary, and the image one gets in their head is far from idyllic.
Now, I recognise what has happened since. I recognise the awakening he has embarked on. About how he has been certified by the Home Office to train police officers on the issues of antisemitism and counter-extremism, and how he tours the country in an effort to stamp out such disgusting and hateful ideologies.
Indeed, he himself has argued today that what he partook in was indefensible, and that his actions “caused profound pain, particularly within the Jewish community.”
I also recognise that there is very much a case to be made here about pot calling the kettle black. Reform UK have been quick to attack Kemi Badenoch for this decision, with Nigel Farage asking on X whether this is “part of the “new generation” of Conservative candidates Kemi Badenoch is promising?”
What he neglected to mention in his critique was that Reform had previously invited Bonehill-Paine to stand as a candidate. But hypocrisy and party political point scoring is not the issue here.
In fact, nor is the issue whether Bonehill-Paine has changed. It is who gets to say he has.
Here, the intervention that matters came not from a party spokesman but from the woman he targeted. Specifically, Luciana Berger.
Now a Labour peer, she wrote that she does not believe he should have any role in public life.
“I feel a bit sick reading well known commentators debate his selection today and say that ‘these are precisely the people we need in public office”
“For the avoidance of doubt I don’t believe this man should have any role in public life, because of both his racism and his view of women”
“Kemi Badenoch you’ve got this very, very wrong.”
This is where the issue lies. Were Kemi and others insistent on making a point about rehabilitation and public office, their first port of call should have been the victims. Individuals like that of Luciana Berger should have been contacted prior to this decision being taken. Instead, the Tories seemingly sidelined them, and have had to pay for such a misstep with mounting public backlash.
This is a necessary and important point of clarification. The offence which Bonehill-Paine partook in was designed to make a specific part of society feel afraid to go about their lives.
Reforming oneself is only part of the solution here – the remainder rests on somebody else, and that somebody is the victim. Luciana Berger’s decision to call this out is telling. It shows a mindset that recognises an individual has gone through a rehabilitative programme, but simultaneously recognises that this is not enough for the specificity and severity of the crime carried out.
That, in my view, should be enough for Bonehill-Paine to be prevented from standing.
The situation has developed, however, and the Board of Deputies has asked the party to rescind the selection and to review its vetting. Of these two measures, the second is of far more interest.
Because it means that somebody within the party sat down, opened up his folder, looked over the record and ticked the box – believing that it presented no difficulty. I find the idea of reaching such a conclusion difficult to believe. Again, I reiterate that I am all for second chances. But there comes a point in which one cannot extend the generosity of yet another second chance. Bonehill-Paine – I believe -, despite what he has done since being released, crossed that point of no return, and I think that Kemi Badenoch should do the right thing and prevent him from standing.
This is, after all, the same Kemi Badenoch who questioned the former PM Keir Starmer over his decision to appoint known convicted fraudster Louise Haigh as Transport Secretary, and who has consistently bashed Andy Burnham for appointing her to his Cabinet too. If such criticisms are founded on the fact that Louise Haigh had a criminal conviction (which was spent by the time she entered government, might I add), then it seems indefensible for her to support Bonehill-Paine’s candidacy in Somerset.
Equal standards must be upheld across the board, and victims’ wishes – in matters as serious as this – should be respected. The Tories have since offered Jewish groups a meeting with Bonehill-Paine, but has seemingly not reached out to Luciana Berger as of yet. It is imperative that changes, and that the victims of his past actions are consulted before further steps are taken.