Former neo-Nazi stands down as Tory candidate following backlash - as Badenoch appoints him 'cultural advisor'

Mr Bonehill-Paine was jailed in 2016 after he was convicted of racially aggravated harassment of Labour peer Baroness Luciana Berger, who is Jewish.

He was also previously jailed for producing an advert for a neo-Nazi rally illustrated with a picture of Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz which promised “an absolute gas”.

In a message posted on social media, former neo-Nazi Joshua Bonehill-Paine said he was withdrawing as a Conservative council candidate.

Mr Bonehill-Paine said he knew that if he stood “other political parties will spend all their time focusing on my past rather than the work I’m doing today, or even fighting antisemitism in their own midst”.

He said: “Rather than standing as a local council candidate, I believe that my experience is better used supporting Kemi Badenoch in her ongoing mission to combat the antisemitism and extremism that is dividing our nation.

“I have therefore informed the party of my decision to withdraw from next year’s council election and Kemi has instead offered that I become an adviser to the Conservative Party’s culture and integration commission, specifically focusing on how young men become radicalised.”

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Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has said she is “sad” Joshua Bonehill-Paine has withdrawn as a local council election candidate, but added: “I am glad he is going to work with me and the party on tackling radicalisation.”

On Wednesday, the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC) declined an offer from the Conservatives to meet Mr Bonehill-Paine.

They urged the party to drop Mr Bonehill-Paine as a candidate, but they said they would meet with the Conservatives to “discuss their decision-making progress”.

Responding to the widespread backlash, Mr Bonehill-Paine said: "The last 24 hours have shown that a lot of people do not understand how terrible I feel about the things I did when I was much younger. "

"I know that my previous actions continue to cause pain in the Jewish community. I had thought that getting involved in my local council and working hard for my community was a good way to show how much I have changed and that I want to give something back.

In a post on X, Mrs Badenoch wrote: “While I am sad that Joshua feels he won’t be given the space to explain his position and represent his community, I am glad he is going to work with me and the party on tackling radicalisation as part of our culture and integration commission.

“If we are going to stop extremism and antisemitism we are going to need help from those people who were part of the problem, but have now changed and are being part of the solution.

“Piling on them and trying to get them cancelled may be sport for other parties but this is a different Conservative Party.

“Sometimes there will be difficult judgment calls, but right now I know that we are the only party actively working to unite the country rather than one particular faction or other.”