Former MP Luciana Berger has urged Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch to drop Joshua Bonehill-Paine as an election candidate, saying he should have no role in public life because of "his racism and his view of women."
Berger speaks out
Writing on social media, Berger, now a Labour member of the House of Lords, said she was "haunted" by the case and told Badenoch she had "got this very, very wrong."
"He was convicted for racial harassment for 5 specific blogs. But that wasn't all – he'd published *reams* of deeply racist, misogynistic and pornographic material about me," said Berger, recalling giving evidence at the Old Bailey while six months pregnant.
Badenoch defends selection
Badenoch defended the selection on Tuesday, insisting she believes in "second chances." She said Bonehill-Paine, a former neo-Nazi, was certified by the Home Office to train police officers on antisemitism and countering extremism.
"He is somebody who has shown contrition for his crimes, has been rehabilitated and is spending every day working to solve the very problem which he knew he had caused previously," she said.
Criticism from Jewish groups and others
The Board of Deputies of British Jews and Labour criticised the decision. Karen Newman, the board's vice-president, told HuffPost: "It beggars belief that any party would select as a candidate a multiply convicted felon and the founder of a far-right group called National British Resistance."
Bonehill-Paine, creator of the viral Crewkerne Gazette series, is due to stand for Somerset council next year. He has convictions for assaulting a police officer, burglary of a police station, and in 2015 was jailed for antisemitic material. In 2016, he was found guilty of racially aggravated harassment of Berger.
Meanwhile, Bonehill-Paine hit back at Reform UK after Nigel Farage joined the criticism, sharing an image of an email indicating Reform had thanked him for applying to be a candidate and passed vetting checks. A Reform spokesperson said: "There's a reason why Mr Bonehill-Paine wasn't selected as a Reform UK candidate. The hypocrisy is breathtaking."
