Chris Mullin (politician)
Encyclopedia
Christopher John Mullin (born 12 December 1947) is a British Labour Party
politician and diarist who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sunderland South
from 1987
to 2010. He was also the author of the novel A Very British Coup (1982) which was later adapted for television.
, Mullin, aged 22, stood unsuccessfully against Liberal Leader Jeremy Thorpe
in North Devon
. By 1980 he was an executive member of the Labour Co-ordinating Committee
. As such he was an active supporter of Tony Benn
when, in 1981, disregarding an appeal from party leader Michael Foot
to abstain from inflaming the party's divisions, Benn stood against the incumbent Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, Denis Healey
. In addition Mullin edited two collections of Benn's speeches and writings Arguments for Socialism (1979) and Arguments for Democracy (1981).
Before being elected as an MP, he was a journalist working for the Granada
current affairs programme World in Action
and was pivotal in securing the release of the Birmingham Six
, a long-standing miscarriage of justice
. He was also editor of the Tribune
newspaper (1982–84). His novel A Very British Coup
was published in 1982. It portrays the destabilisation of a left wing British government by the forces of the Establishment. The novel was adapted for television by Alan Plater
, with substantial alterations to the plot, and screened in 1988.
. On 28 January 2011, the university also awarded him an honorary Doctorate in Law, in recognition of his achievements.
, and was returned at every subsequent election until 2005
. He did not seek re-election in 2010.
His constituency has been the first to declare in every general election since 1992 (1992
, 1997
, 2001
, 2005
and 2010). Mullin jokes about being the UK's sole MP for a few minutes and muses about forming a government.
Chris Mullin first visited Cambodia
in 1973, and again in 1980; in 1989 and 1990, he was outspoken on the British Government's record in Cambodia
, being a leading voice in some of the first protracted debates on Britain's provision of military support to the Khmer Rouge
, and attributing increasing public interest in the issue to the documentary films of John Pilger
.
He was a member of the Socialist Campaign Group
, Secretary of the All-Party Parliamentary Group
for Vietnam
and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group
for Cambodia
, Member of the Home Affairs
Select Committee (1992–97), Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee (1997–99).
as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
at the DETR in July 1999 before taking over from George Foulkes
as Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for International Development
in 2001.
He returned to government in June 2003, as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office, but after the 2005
election again returned to the backbenches. Before the Labour victory of 1997
, Mullin had attained a reputation for campaigning on behalf of victims of injustice and opposition to the curtailing of civil rights
. His campaigning stance had to change while a minister because of the collective responsibility of government
. His vote against the government's proposal for 90-days detention without trial for terrorist suspects, as one of 49 Labour rebels, seemed to indicate a re-emergence of his civil libertarian instincts. He criticised the Labour government's commitment to its expressed policy on Africa.
Mullin, one of the lowest claimers, provided some comic relief when it was revealed that the television at his second home is a very old black-and-white model with a £45 TV licence.
site reported that Mullin had decided to stand down at the 2010 general election.
(whom he dubbed "The Man") as the person most likely to lead the party back to power. Peter Riddell
of the Times suggested that A View From the Foothills deserved to become "the central text for understanding the Blair years", while Decline & Fall, in which Mullin (by then a backbencher
again) expressed wry consternation at the way the government operated under Blair's successor Gordon Brown
, were commended for their independence of outlook, revealing, as Jenni Russell
put it in the Sunday Times, Mullin's "readiness to like people who don't echo his politics".
The three volumes were adapted for the stage by Michael Chaplin as A Walk on Part. It premiered at the Live Theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne in May 2011, and moving to the Soho Theatre
in London.
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician and diarist who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sunderland South
Sunderland South (UK Parliament constituency)
Sunderland South was, from 1950 until 2010, a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-History:...
from 1987
United Kingdom general election, 1987
The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd...
to 2010. He was also the author of the novel A Very British Coup (1982) which was later adapted for television.
Political career
In the 1970 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
, Mullin, aged 22, stood unsuccessfully against Liberal Leader Jeremy Thorpe
Jeremy Thorpe
John Jeremy Thorpe is a British former politician who was leader of the Liberal Party from 1967 to 1976 and was the Member of Parliament for North Devon from 1959 to 1979. His political career was damaged when an acquaintance, Norman Scott, claimed to have had a love affair with Thorpe at a time...
in North Devon
North Devon (UK Parliament constituency)
North Devon is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election....
. By 1980 he was an executive member of the Labour Co-ordinating Committee
Labour Co-ordinating Committee
The Labour Co-ordinating Committee was a factional body inside the British Labour Party established in 1978 and wound-up in 1995. In that period it moved from a group established to challenge to leadership of the party from the left to the vanguard of Tony Blair's drive to modernise the party's...
. As such he was an active supporter of Tony Benn
Tony Benn
Anthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC is a British Labour Party politician and a former MP and Cabinet Minister.His successful campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963...
when, in 1981, disregarding an appeal from party leader Michael Foot
Michael Foot
Michael Mackintosh Foot, FRSL, PC was a British Labour Party politician, journalist and author, who was a Member of Parliament from 1945 to 1955 and from 1960 until 1992...
to abstain from inflaming the party's divisions, Benn stood against the incumbent Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, Denis Healey
Denis Healey
Denis Winston Healey, Baron Healey CH, MBE, PC is a British Labour politician, who served as Secretary of State for Defence from 1964 to 1970 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979.-Early life:...
. In addition Mullin edited two collections of Benn's speeches and writings Arguments for Socialism (1979) and Arguments for Democracy (1981).
Before being elected as an MP, he was a journalist working for the Granada
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
current affairs programme World in Action
World in Action
World in Action was a British investigative current affairs programme made by Granada Television from 1963 until 1998. Its campaigning journalism frequently had a major impact on events of the day. Its production teams often took audacious risks and gained a solid reputation for its often...
and was pivotal in securing the release of the Birmingham Six
Birmingham Six
The Birmingham Six were six men—Hugh Callaghan, Patrick Joseph Hill, Gerard Hunter, Richard McIlkenny, William Power and John Walker—sentenced to life imprisonment in 1975 in the United Kingdom for the Birmingham pub bombings. Their convictions were declared unsafe and quashed by the Court of...
, a long-standing miscarriage of justice
Miscarriage of justice
A miscarriage of justice primarily is the conviction and punishment of a person for a crime they did not commit. The term can also apply to errors in the other direction—"errors of impunity", and to civil cases. Most criminal justice systems have some means to overturn, or "quash", a wrongful...
. He was also editor of the Tribune
Tribune (magazine)
Tribune is a democratic socialist weekly, founded in 1937 published in London. It is independent but supports the Labour Party from the left...
newspaper (1982–84). His novel A Very British Coup
A Very British Coup
A Very British Coup is a 1982 novel by British politician Chris Mullin. In 1988, the novel was adapted for television, directed by Mick Jackson, with a screenplay by Alan Plater and starring Ray McAnally...
was published in 1982. It portrays the destabilisation of a left wing British government by the forces of the Establishment. The novel was adapted for television by Alan Plater
Alan Plater
Alan Frederick Plater, CBE, FRSL was an English playwright and screenwriter, who worked extensively in British television from the 1960s to the 2000s.-Career:...
, with substantial alterations to the plot, and screened in 1988.
Education
Mullin is a graduate of the University of HullUniversity of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
. On 28 January 2011, the university also awarded him an honorary Doctorate in Law, in recognition of his achievements.
Parliamentary career
Mullin was first elected MP in 1987United Kingdom general election, 1987
The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd...
, and was returned at every subsequent election until 2005
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
. He did not seek re-election in 2010.
His constituency has been the first to declare in every general election since 1992 (1992
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
, 1997
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, 2001
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
, 2005
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
and 2010). Mullin jokes about being the UK's sole MP for a few minutes and muses about forming a government.
Chris Mullin first visited Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
in 1973, and again in 1980; in 1989 and 1990, he was outspoken on the British Government's record in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, being a leading voice in some of the first protracted debates on Britain's provision of military support to the Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
, and attributing increasing public interest in the issue to the documentary films of John Pilger
John Pilger
John Richard Pilger is an Australian journalist and documentary maker, based in London. He has twice won Britain's Journalist of the Year Award, and his documentaries have received academy awards in Britain and the US....
.
He was a member of the Socialist Campaign Group
Socialist Campaign Group
The Socialist Campaign Group is a left-wing democratic socialist grouping of Labour Party Members of Parliament in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. It was formed in December 1982 as an alternative Parliamentary left-wing group to the Tribune Group...
, Secretary of the All-Party Parliamentary Group
All-Party Parliamentary Group
An all-party parliamentary group is a grouping in the UK parliament that is composed of politicians from all political parties.-All-party parliamentary groups:...
for Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group
All-Party Parliamentary Group
An all-party parliamentary group is a grouping in the UK parliament that is composed of politicians from all political parties.-All-party parliamentary groups:...
for Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, Member of the Home Affairs
Home Affairs Select Committee
The Home Affairs Select Committee is a Committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom.-Remit:The Home Affairs Committee is one of the House of Commons Select Committees related to government departments: its terms of reference are to examine "the expenditure,...
Select Committee (1992–97), Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee (1997–99).
In government
Despite his criticism of the government, he replaced Alan MealeAlan Meale
Sir Joseph Alan Meale is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Mansfield since 1987.-Early life:...
as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
A Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the government of the United Kingdom, junior to both a Minister of State and a Secretary of State....
at the DETR in July 1999 before taking over from George Foulkes
George Foulkes, Baron Foulkes of Cumnock
George Foulkes, Baron Foulkes of Cumnock, PC is a British Labour Party life peer. He has been a member of the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the Scottish Parliament...
as Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for International Development
Department for International Development
The Department For International Development is a United Kingdom government department with a Cabinet Minister in charge. It was separated from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1997. The goal of the department is "to promote sustainable development and eliminate world poverty". The current...
in 2001.
He returned to government in June 2003, as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office, but after the 2005
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
election again returned to the backbenches. Before the Labour victory of 1997
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, Mullin had attained a reputation for campaigning on behalf of victims of injustice and opposition to the curtailing of civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
. His campaigning stance had to change while a minister because of the collective responsibility of government
Cabinet collective responsibility
Cabinet collective responsibility is constitutional convention in governments using the Westminster System that members of the Cabinet must publicly support all governmental decisions made in Cabinet, even if they do not privately agree with them. This support includes voting for the government in...
. His vote against the government's proposal for 90-days detention without trial for terrorist suspects, as one of 49 Labour rebels, seemed to indicate a re-emergence of his civil libertarian instincts. He criticised the Labour government's commitment to its expressed policy on Africa.
Expenses claims
During the UK Parliamentary expenses scandalUnited Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal
The United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal was a major political scandal triggered by the leak and subsequent publication by the Telegraph Group in 2009 of expense claims made by members of the United Kingdom Parliament over several years...
Mullin, one of the lowest claimers, provided some comic relief when it was revealed that the television at his second home is a very old black-and-white model with a £45 TV licence.
Leaving parliament
On 10 May 2008, the Sunderland EchoSunderland Echo
The Sunderland Echo is an evening newspaper serving the Sunderland, South Tyneside and East Durham areas of North East England. The newspaper was founded by Samuel Storey, Edward Backhouse, Edward Temperley Gourley, Charles Palmer, Richard Ruddock, Thomas Glaholm and Thomas Scott Turnbull in 1873,...
site reported that Mullin had decided to stand down at the 2010 general election.
Diaries
Mullin published three volumes of widely praised diaires that described the progress of "New Labour" from the death of the party leader John Smith in 1994 to the 2010 general election: A View From the Foothills (2009) (recounting Mullin's ministerial career from 1999-2005), Decline & Fall: Diaries 2005-2010 (2010) and A Walk-On Part: Diaries 1994-1999 (2011). Among others things, Mullin recorded his gradual disillusion with the Labour Party's left-wing and his rather reluctant support, after Smith's death, for fellow North-Eastern MP Tony BlairTony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
(whom he dubbed "The Man") as the person most likely to lead the party back to power. Peter Riddell
Peter Riddell
The Rt Hon. Peter Riddell is a British journalist and author. From 1991 to 2010 he was a political commentator for The Times and has been an Assistant Editor since 1991. Prior to this, he was US Editor and Washington Bureau Chief at The Financial Times between 1989 and 1991.He has been a member of...
of the Times suggested that A View From the Foothills deserved to become "the central text for understanding the Blair years", while Decline & Fall, in which Mullin (by then a backbencher
Backbencher
In Westminster parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a Member of Parliament or a legislator who does not hold governmental office and is not a Front Bench spokesperson in the Opposition...
again) expressed wry consternation at the way the government operated under Blair's successor Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
, were commended for their independence of outlook, revealing, as Jenni Russell
Jenni Russell
Jenni Russell is a British columnist and broadcaster. She writes the Monday political column for The Evening Standard and also writes regularly for The Sunday Times and The Guardian. She worked for many years at the BBC and ITN, most recently as editor of The World Tonight on BBC Radio 4...
put it in the Sunday Times, Mullin's "readiness to like people who don't echo his politics".
The three volumes were adapted for the stage by Michael Chaplin as A Walk on Part. It premiered at the Live Theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne in May 2011, and moving to the Soho Theatre
Soho Theatre
Soho Theatre is a theatre in the eponymous Soho district of the City of Westminster. It presents new works of theatre, together with comedy and cabaret....
in London.
Personal life
Mullin's wife, Ngoc, is of Vietnamese origin and they have two daughters, Sarah (born 1989) and Emma (born 1995). He owns a cat.As author
- A Very British CoupA Very British CoupA Very British Coup is a 1982 novel by British politician Chris Mullin. In 1988, the novel was adapted for television, directed by Mick Jackson, with a screenplay by Alan Plater and starring Ray McAnally...
(1982) - Error of Judgment: The Truth about the Birmingham BombingsBirmingham SixThe Birmingham Six were six men—Hugh Callaghan, Patrick Joseph Hill, Gerard Hunter, Richard McIlkenny, William Power and John Walker—sentenced to life imprisonment in 1975 in the United Kingdom for the Birmingham pub bombings. Their convictions were declared unsafe and quashed by the Court of...
(ISBN 1853713651) - A View from the Foothills: The Diaries of Chris Mullin (2009) (ISBN 1846682231)
- Decline & Fall: Diaries 2005–2010 (2010)
- A Walk-On Part (2011)
As editor
- Arguments for Socialism by Tony BennTony BennAnthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC is a British Labour Party politician and a former MP and Cabinet Minister.His successful campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963...
(1979) - Arguments for Democracy by Tony BennTony BennAnthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC is a British Labour Party politician and a former MP and Cabinet Minister.His successful campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963...
(1981)