Man who called Hitler 'brilliant' to be Reform UK's vetting chief

A Reform UK general election candidate who said Hitler was "brilliant" at inspiring people and described Bashar al-Assad as "gentle by nature" has been put in charge of the party's vetting process.

- Ben Quinn

Jack Aaron's comments about the Nazi leader and Syrian dictator came to light last year when he stood for Reform in Welwyn Hatfield. He also claimed Vladimir Putin's use of force in Ukraine was "legitimate".

Aaron made the comments as part of a pseudoscientific theory of personality types. He is the president of the self-styled World Socionics Society, a group promoting the idea that there are 16 personality types.

While he was one of many Reform candidates whose comments caused controversy, leading to dozens of them being dropped by the party, he has instead been appointed head of vetting at Reform UK.

The role includes scouring prospective candidates' social media output and advising them on what should be deleted.