Portsmouth North MP Penny Mordaunt campaign video edited over Oscar Pistorius scene and British paralympian's demand

On Sunday morning, Portsmouth North MP Penny Mordaunt announced her bid to become Tory leader and shared her campaign’s launch video, which features British runner Jonnie Peacock winning gold at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London.

The sporting hero asked to be removed, posting a message on Twitter that said: 'I officially request to be removed from this video…. Anything but blue please.'

With a stirring rendition of I Vow To Thee My Country as backing music, the video also shows a grinning Oscar Pistorius at the London games - filmed two years before he was convicted for shooting and killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

The South African's verdict of manslaughter was later upgraded to murder and he was sentenced to 13 years in jail.

One Twitter user responded to the video by saying: 'I don’t know how it isn’t a sketch or parody.

'Is anyone going to comment how there’s not even a single millisecond of footage of the actual candidate? But there is of… Oscar Pistorius? You couldn’t make it up.'

The campaign video also drew criticism for a voice-over saying that Conservatives ‘do not have a monopoly on good people or good ideas’ while showing parliamentary footage of Labour MP Jo Cox, who was shot and killed in 2016.

Penny Mordaunt’s campaign has since edited the video to remove footage of Mr Peacock and Oscar Pistorius.