The Devil (Chris Mounsey) is a political blogger and founder member of the UK Libertarian Party. His blog can be found at The Devil's Kitchen.

Why did you get involved in the political world?

It was a breakfast ritual to listen to Pater Devil yelling coherently – and occasionally incoherently – at the morning paper, and he was (although obviously livid) often very funny. Many people try to rebel against their parents, but when I discovered blogging, your humble Devil decided to emulate his father exactly. Except without the humour.


When did you join your political party?

Join? Join! I helped start it! It was a blog post at Looking for a voice that kicked it all off. In September 2007 Guthrum appealed for people to start a new party and his drive coincided with one of my most virulent bouts of libertarianism. The five of us all wrote or read blogs and we had seen how vocal the libertarian (or classical liberal) section of the blogosphere was: we thought that if we could harness even a small part of that, it would give us a base to work from. So, after a lot of talking (and strong debate), we launched the UK Libertarian Party on New Year's Day 2008, and we now have over 300 members spread throughout the country. Soon we hope to be able to give people the opportunity actually to vote for the party, and to spread the libertarian word. In the meantime, if David Cameron could stop misrepresenting what “libertarian” means at his party conferences, we'd all be a lot happier.


What is your earliest political memory?

Apart from the aforementioned breakfast rants of my male parent, my first memory was of my father maintaining that he was not going to sit up and watch Labour win the 1992 election. The next thing I know, it's about 5 in the morning and darling pater has burst into my room in his dressing-gown yelling, “we won! We won! I don't believe it: we won!”


Which one law would you repeal?

The European Communities Act 1972, which is the lynchpin upon which our membership of the EU turns. Repealing that one law would enable us to strike down all of the legislation imported through the EU's corpus juris and pave the way for a return to the common law system of which we were justly proud. I have become convinced that even the vague possibility of a freer society – leave aside a libertarian one – is dependent upon us leaving the European Union.


Which one law would you introduce?

It would be a law to replace all other criminal law, and it would be very simple: “No one may initiate force or fraud against another person's life, liberty or property.” Yes, it could be seen as rather vague, but that's why we have judges and a tradition of precedent.


What’s your favourite view in the world?

What? My favourite vista? That would be the view over Edinburgh at dawn from Arthur's Seat: it's quite fantastic. It's even more fantastic when you have taken some... err... interesting substances and your view is enhanced by watching three suns rise and you feel, frankly, like Luke Skywalker looking over a rather built-up Tatooine.


What’s your favourite political quotation?

There are so many, but for general pithiness, it would have to be the P J O'Rourke quote that adorns the masthead of The Kitchen: “Politics is the business of getting power and privilege without possessing merit”. It serves a double purpose, you see: it acts as a warning to the general populace and a rebuke to our lords and masters.


What music gets you up to dance?

Anything with some great guitars and fine lyrics. I have been known to dance like a dervish to Sometimes by James quite frequently.


If you could have been present at any debate in the House of Commons over the last three hundred years, which would it have been , and why?

I would like to take part in any debate in the last ten years so that I could stand – after some utterly fantastical statement by Gordon Brown – and simply say, “You, sir, are a liar and hypocrite and not fit to serve in this House. In the name of God, go!” Sod un-Parliamentary language – some people are just beyond the pale.


Imagine you are planning a dinner party, pick six people (living or dead) to invite

George Orwell (frighteningly accurate), Simon Raven (one of the finest authors in the world, ever), Oliver Cromwell (the best speech made in Parliament, ever), Mike Scott (of The Waterboys: probably the best band in the world, ever) and Adam Smith (an erudite chap). Oh, and I'd invite Polly Toynbee, so that we could sit her in the corner with a dunce's cap on and occasionally pelt her with scraps.


Who is your best friend in politics?

I am not that well connected, really; I do have some respect for Dan Hannan MEP and Douglas Carswell MP and Mark Wallace of The Taxpayer's Alliance is a good mate.


What’s your favourite form of transport?

I still feel a childish glee at the very existence of trains and they are definitely the best for long journeys: so relaxing.


What’s your favourite dish?

A bowl. Hahaha. Seriously, my mother used to make the most fantastic kedgeree. I miss that.


What do you dream about?

I try not to dream.


When did you last cry, and why?

I can't remember exactly. Sometime in my last year in Edinburgh, in 2006, when I was running a (not very good) business and I was skint, starving, lonely and having a none-too-controlled breakdown.


What’s the last thing you bought in a shop?

My lunch. An E10 – which is some spicy beef concoction – from the Chinese in the village where I work. Other than that, it would be a pair of trousers that I bought in a charity shop. My boss informed me that, from the cut, they were definitely golfing trousers. I don't play golf, but now I know that some dead man did.


What’s the funniest You Tube video you’ve recently seen?

Anything with Frankie Boyle in it.


What is the best speech you have ever heard (and been present at)?

I don't tend to listen to other people's speeches much. Nigel Farage is a pretty good speaker though; and Steve Jobs could not only sell snow to Eskimos, he could get them to entirely stop using the stuff that falls from the sky and exclusively buy Apple iSnow.


Who’s your favourite comedian?

Frankie Boyle: he has a very dark sense of humour.


Have you ever cried at a film? Which one(s)?

Oh, many. The Elephant Man makes me weep like a small child, and Kevin Smith's Chasing Amy is funny but heart-wrenching too.


Which is your favourite political biography or autobiography?

I rarely read either. In fact, I don't think that I ever have.


What is your favourite novel?

That changes from day to day, but today I shall say Nineteen Eighty-Four. Otherwise, Simon Raven's Alms For Oblivion series is top notch and Iain M Banks writes the best sci-fi around.


Name a book you have read which has failed to live up to expectations

The Kite Runner: I found the whole thing slightly hysterical.


Who would you like to say sorry to, and why?

Anyone who I hurt with my often-excessive drinking. Luckily, I have apologised to most of them and they seem to have, on the whole, forgiven me.


What job would you be doing if you weren’t involved in the political world?

My ideal job would be to design book and CD covers. But, right now, designing websites and web application user interfaces is a pretty good life.


What’s the best holiday you have been on?

Skiing with my brothers, a couple of years ago. The three of us were in a chalet with a bunch of Dubliners and the whole thing was just exceedingly funny from beginning to end.


Where in the world would you most like to go on holiday?

I have to go on holiday to do something. The place isn't so important. In fact, I don't really rate holidays at all: I enjoy my work too much.


When was the last time you used public transport?

Last night. I took the Tube from Brixton to Victoria. I love the Tube: it's trains! In tunnels! Like pistons!


What do you collect?

Vices. And useless facts.


What is your most unusual hobby?

I talk to my computers a lot. And some people think that blogging is pretty damn unusual.


When was the last time you went to the theatre and what did you see?

At the beginning of October, I went to see my friends, The Penny Dreadfuls, perform their Edinburgh Fringe show – which had transferred to the Leicester Square Theatre for a night. I took my father along as he is a massive fan of theirs.


Which newspapers do you read regularly?

None, really. I read everything online, and usually check the BBC, the Telegraph and the Times. I get most of my news leads from blogs.


Which websites do you visit regularly?

Blogs such as Tim Worstall, Mr Eugenides, Guido, The Appalling Strangeness. I like the swearbloggers: they make me laugh. Unfortunately, apart from myself (and Mr E), they seem to have a very limited shelf-life.


Which blogs do you love or hate?

See above. There are numerous blogs that I hate, but I can't think what they are as I can't be bothered to keep that information in my memory. Space is getting short in there.


Which magazines do you subscribe to?

Private Eye, although it irritates me more and more these days. I used to subscribe to The Spectator until Matthew d'Ancona turned it into a boring Cameron hagiography.


Which five words would your friends use about you?

Lively, intelligent, funny, introspective, drunk.


Which five words would your enemies use about you?

Tedious, posh, irritating, especially drunk.


Who is your political hero?

None. Although Douglas Carswell is a decent chap with the right ideas: he's about the only MP I can be bothered to talk to.


Who is your political hate figure?

There are oh-so-very-many. However, Edward Heath, Roy Hattersley, Gordon Brown, Polly Toynbee, and Charles Clarke would have to feature on any definitive short-list.


What’s your most memorable time in politics?

Talking to the Oxford Politics Society in June about the Libertarian Party.


What’s your most embarrassing moment in politics?

See above!


What’s your prediction for the next general election?

The Conservatives will win a majority, Labour will get pummelled and small parties will be nearly obliterated. The next election will be a straight Tory vs. Labour fight. The election after that however.


Who is your favourite and least favourite political interviewer?

My favourite would be Lesley Riddoch, who used to be on Radio Scotland. The man who presents Question Time – I forget his name – is an idiot. The majority of the rest are merely piss-poor.


What do you never miss on TV?

Mock The Week. And Midsomer Murders – I like to try to predict how many dead bodies will turn up this week! But I watch very little telly.


Which current foreign politician do you most admire?

Vaclav Klaus (as much as I admire any politician anyway): he appears to have his head screwed on straight about a number of things, most notably the EU and the Great Climate Change scam.


What do you listen to / watch when you get up in the morning?

My MacBook wakes me up with random songs from my iTunes Library – it's an excellent way of discovering songs that I didn't know I had. This is then followed by the sound of strong coffee being poured into my massive cup.


Complete this sentence: The thing I hate about politics is...

... the corruption, hypocrisy and pusillanimous ignorance of politicians.


Complete this sentence: The thing I love about politics is...

... reminding people – through The Kitchen – that politicians are corrupt, pusillanimous, ignorant hypocrites.


What would you like your political epitaph to be?

Here lies The Devil: not as bad as he was painted.