Former neo-Nazi withdraws as Tory council candidate

A former neo-Nazi has withdrawn as a Conservative Party council candidate following a backlash over his selection. Joshua Bonehill-Paine was selected as a Tory candidate for Somerset council despite having been jailed for inciting racial hatred, with Kemi Badenoch declaring the party “ believes in second chances ”. Bonehill-Paine said on Wednesday he had realised he must do more to show the Jewish community “how hard I will work to fight to help destroy anti-Semitism and rebuild trust”. However, he will now work with Mrs Badenoch on the Conservatives’ Culture and Integration Commission “tackling radicalisation”. Jewish organisations criticised Bonehill-Paine’s selection, as did Baroness Berger , a Jewish former Labour MP who had been victimised by him. Lady Berger said that Mrs Badenoch’s decision to appoint Bonehill-Paine as an adviser was “an insult”. “The decision to welcome this individual as an adviser to the Leader of the Opposition is no better than allowing him to stand as a council candidate. It is a privileged and influential national role. “As a victim of this man’s heinous crimes, this appointment is an insult.”