Satirist Mark Thomas has organised a contest to find someone to stand in the next general election using policies voted for by the public.

Members of the public are being invited to apply to stand as an independent candidate using policies mainly based on those voted for in Thomas's stand-up shows and his BBC Radio 4 programme Mark Thomas - The Manifesto. The winner will be made a candidate for their local constituency, with their £500 deposit fully paid for, and with an extra £500 to spend on campaigning expenses.

The competition has been launched to coincide with the publication of the print edition of The People's Manifesto, published by Ebury Press (buy). Each candidate will have to pick five policies from the manifesto to campaign on, as well as campaigning on local issues.

Amongst the policies included in the manifesto are: "Shut down tax havens... bomb Switzerland", "Windsor to be renamed Lower Slough", "The Daily Mail should be forced to print the words 'The Paper That Supported Hitler' on its masthead", "We should adopt an opt-out system for organ donations" and "Party manifestos should be legally binding."

More details about the competition see the People's Manifesto website. Entry for the competition ends on the 28th February.

A new series of Mark Thomas - The Manifesto begins this Thursday (4th February) on Radio 4.