Most will probably agree nobody's career should be ruined by something they did at school. It was a second allegation against him, as a university student, that prompted Christopher Luxon to commission an independent inquiry.
Maria Dew KC has now found the allegations of Uffindell's behaviour towards a female flatmate at Otago University were not as reported. Drew's report has not been made public so it is not known precisely what details of the woman's account may have differed from those of others interviewed.
Clearly, she had a most unpleasant falling out with Uffindell, one that she found frightening, as the flat was breaking up, and at the very least the incident accords with the MP's admission that he does not like the person he was in his youth. To Luxon's relief no doubt, the inquiry brought no further complaints out of Uffindell's past.
If he runs next year, he will present himself as a reformed character, someone who is no longer the bully he admits he was at King's, where he committed an assault on a much younger boy. People do grow up. They can change, mentally and temperamentally, as they get older.
For some, possibly, it is not until they finish university that they learn how to behave civilly towards difficult colleagues, clients or customers in professional or business careers.
Politics, though, is different. Politics involves public scrutiny and aggressive opposition. A politician's past is always capable of hurting their career and their party. Uffindell owned up to National's candidate selectors for the Tauranga by-election this year but, oddly, Luxon was not informed of the blot on the candidate's record before he went in to bat for him.
The way a politician handles the problem in the present can become more important than what happened in the past. Uffindell was not wise to contact his old school victim and offer a belated apology. When the recipient saw him running for election soon afterwards he naturally felt mistreated, again.
A politician's judgment is what should matter most to voters. Nobody should be barred from public office for misbehaviour long ago in their youth, and it is not in the public interest to deter such people from seeking election.
They can contribute usefully to public debate. When Uffindell next speaks on crime and punishment he will need to be an earnest believer in rehabilitation.
But neither he nor National has emerged from this well. It was another regrettable National candidate selection and it would be surprising if Uffindell runs again.
