A view from the foothills : the diaries of Chris Mullin

'It is said that failed politicians make the best diarists.

In which case I am in with a chance.' Chris MullinChris Mullin has been a Labour MP for twenty years, and despite his refusal to toe the party line - on issues like 90 days detention, for example - he has held several prominent posts.

To the apoplexy of the whips, he was for a time the only person appointed to government who voted against the Iraq War.

He also chaired the Home Affairs Select Committee and was a member of the Parliamentary Committee, giving him direct access to the court of Tony Blair. Irreverent, wry and candid, Mullin's keen sense of the ridiculous allows him to give a far clearer insight into the workings of Government than other, more overtly successful politicians.

He offers humorous and incisive takes on all aspects of political life: from the build-up to Iraq, to the scandalous sums of tax-payers' money spent on ministerial cars he didn't want to use.

His critically acclaimed diary will entertain and amuse far beyond the political classes.