Rachida Dati's latest front cover

When the former French justice minister and now member of the European parliament, Rachida Dati, makes the headlines in France it's hard to know whether it'll be for political reasons or because she's a - well for want of a better word - celebrity.

It was only a matter of time perhaps, but in terms of content and true to form it's rather the latter which marks her "return" with the front cover of last week's copy of Gala, showing a smiling Dati with daughter, Zohra.

And of course a photo spread and complete interview can be found within the pages of the weekly glossy, with Dati answering some personal and professional questions.

Dati, you might remember, was on paper at least, a pretty smart choice when she was appointed justice minister back in June 2007.

She was the first person, let alone woman, of North African origin to hold a top government post and she was seen as a symbol of just about everything the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy could wish for as he set about the task of "remodelling" the political landscape of the country.

But her time in office went slightly pear-shaped as her department haemorrhaged staff during her tenure, she went wildly over-budget in her entertainment expenses at a time when the government as a whole was recommending economic frugality, and her attempts to reform the antiquated French judicial system weren't helped by her personal style with her being lambasted as incompetent by many within the profession and the political opposition.

She was also mocked untiringly by the weekly satirical le Canard Enchaîné, and so long seemingly protected by Sarkozy, she gradually found herself exiled from the inner circle of ministers consulted over government strategy.

Even though she was successfully parachuted in to a safe seat for the governing centre-right Union pour un Mouvement Populaire (Union for a Popular Movement, UMP) in last year's local elections to become mayor of the seventh arrondissement of Paris, Dati's days in government were numbered.

And the final straw perhaps was her highly-publicised pregnancy; she isn't married and refused to name the father of her daughter born in January.

Her rapid return to work just days after giving birth to Zohra and the appearance of "business as usual" gave rise to the inevitable polemic as to whether she had "done the right thing" and a couple of weeks later Sarkozy quashed all speculation about what would happen to her political career (in the short term at least) by announcing that Dati would be running for a sure-fire seat in the European parliamentary elections in June, a move which would see her leave the government.

Dati might now be based in Brussels and Strasbourg for her job and her appearances within the French media less frequent, but she can still sell a few extra copies of a magazine.

And that's especially true when there's an "exclusive interview" and she promises to describe how motherhood has changed her life, her "painful" departure from government, possible aspirations to become her party's candidate for mayor of Paris in 2014 and more, much more (readers are promised).

But if you're hoping for revelations about the identity of Zohra's father, you'll be disappointed.

Dati is standing firm in her decision not to divulge his name.

"I'm not playing," she says. "It's my choice and our decision," she tells the magazine.

"Those that I love are reliable people."