In a move that has left many wondering if the Conservative Party's vetting process is run by a ouija board, a former neo-Nazi who was jailed for antisemitic abuse against a Jewish former MP has been selected to stand as a local election candidate. The party leader, Kemi Badenoch, is standing by the decision, citing rehabilitation and a second chance - because who doesn't love a good redemption arc, especially when it involves someone who once performed a Nazi salute in court?

Joshua Bonehill-Paine, a name that sounds like a villain from a lesser Ian Fleming novel, was convicted in 2016 of racially harassing Luciana Berger, then a Labour MP and now a member of the House of Lords. Berger, who is Jewish, described the harassment as a 'sustained campaign' that affected her life 'in lots of different ways' due to the sheer volume and extremity of the material. She's now urging the Tories to block his candidacy, arguing that 'we need to have a bar when it comes to standing for public office' - a bar that, apparently, is currently set somewhere around 'hasn't been convicted of a hate crime.'

Bonehill-Paine's rap sheet includes a three-year prison sentence for posting antisemitic material ahead of a planned neo-Nazi rally in 2015, followed by the harassment conviction a year later. During the trial at the Old Bailey, the judge noted it was 'difficult to envisage a worse case' and that Bonehill-Paine 'sat in the dock smirking throughout.' Berger also claimed he performed a 'full Nazi salute to his supporters in the public gallery' - a gesture that rather undermines any claims of newfound contrition, but hey, everyone deserves a second chance, right?

Since his release, Bonehill-Paine has described his past views as 'indefensible' and claims to have had an 'epiphany' while reading the Bible in a segregation cell. He now delivers counter-extremism sessions and runs The Crewkerne Gazette, a satirical X page that posts AI-generated deepfakes of politicians like Nigel Farage and Badenoch - because nothing says 'I've reformed' like mocking your party leader with fake videos.

Badenoch, however, is doubling down. She told the BBC that while Bonehill-Paine's crimes were 'appalling,' he has served his sentence and shown he is 'more than contrite.' Her logic: if we can't accept reformed radicals into the fight against extremism, then we can't pretend we believe in rehabilitation. It's a bold stance, one that has the Board of Deputies of British Jews calling the selection 'beggars belief' and demanding he be dropped. They've been offered a meeting with the candidate, which should be fun.

The Liberal Democrats and Labour have also weighed in, with Lib Dem MP Adam Dance asking for an explanation of why he's 'fit to serve,' and a Labour spokesperson calling it 'a total disgrace.' Meanwhile, Bonehill-Paine says he wants to 'give back' to the community that supported him after his release in 2018. Because nothing says 'giving back' like a viral satirical page that deepfakes politicians.

So, as the Tories gear up for the 2027 Somerset Council elections, they're betting that voters in Crewkerne South will see a reformed man, not a former neo-Nazi who smirked through his trial. It's a bold strategy, Cotton. Let's see if it pays off.