A former far-right activist, who has a string of convictions including harassing a Jewish MP, has been selected to stand as a Conservative candidate in upcoming local elections.
Joshua Bonehill-Paine has said he was “tremendously proud” to have been selected by the party to stand as a candidate for Crewkerne South in next year’s Somerset Council elections.
Mr Bonehill-Paine, who now runs a political satire account on social media posting AI videos, is a former neo-Nazi activist who has several convictions, including posting anti-Semitic material ahead of a planned neo-Nazi rally.
In 2016 he was found guilty of harassing former MP Luciana Berger in a string of anti-Jewish rants, posting articles online calling her a “dominatrix” and “an evil money-grabber” with a “deep-rooted hatred of men”.
open image in galleryIn one, he claimed the number of Jewish Labour MPs was a “problem” and illustrated his posts with offensive pictures, including the anti-Jewish cliche of a rat with Ms Berger’s face superimposed on it.
Asked about his candidacy, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the party “believes in second chances”.
“Josh is someone who actually has been certified by the Home Office to train police officers on anti-Semitism and on countering extremism,” she said.
“Yes, he is somebody who had been previously convicted, but he is someone 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 added: “This is not just someone that we’ve picked up who’s a convicted criminal, this somebody who is actively working to help communities, especially Jewish communities and this is what I want to see. I want second chances for good people, for people who’ve their lessons for people who are showing that they know what they did was wrong.”
open image in galleryThe Conservative Party said his past actions were “indefensible” but insisted he has “sought to make amends through counter-extremism work”.
“He was rightly punished and served his sentence,” a spokesperson said. “Mr Bonehill-Paine has explained that he has sought to make amends through counter-extremism work.
“The Conservative Party believes in rehabilitation and that people can change, but all members must adhere to our code of conduct and our values.
“Ultimately the decision to elect him will be one for the public.”
Mr Bonehill-Paine now runs the Crewkerne Gazette, a satirical social media account with thousands of followers, and has shared videos of himself speaking publicly against antisemitism.
open image in galleryHe told The Independent he is “very proud to be a changed man from the one that I was over 10 years ago”, and said: “For the last 8 years I have worked in counter extremism delivering seminars and talks to the police, probation, schools and universities.”
He added: “My only hope is that more people like me, who have made terrible mistakes change their life around and turn around from the path they are on, this especially is concerning antisemitism.”
Announcing his candidacy on social media, Mr Bonehill-Paine vowed to “fight for local people first” and put Crewkerne “on the map”.
“I founded the The Crewkerne Gazette and put our town on the map. Now it is time to put Crewkerne first at County Hall,” he wrote.
open image in gallery“No more weakness. No more excuses. No more decline. No more being forgotten.”
It comes as Ms Badenoch clamps down on candidate selection for the next general election, having reportedly blocked former Conservative Party co-chairman Sir Grant Shapps from standing as an MP.
She wrote in the Telegraph that there would be “no special treatment for former MPs”, adding: “Just because someone was a minister does not mean they automatically come back as a minister again. Just because someone had a seat before does not mean the party owes them another one.
“Everyone starts from scratch. Everyone has to earn their place.”