|
LONDON - Former British prime minister Tony Blair has become the world's most expensive public speaker, reported The Times of London.
Mr Blair earns up to US$250,000 (S$374,625) for a 90-minute speech and has pulled in over £12 million
(S$29 million) since leaving office in June last year.
'He is one of the biggest stars in the world.Who else is there?' The Times quoted Mr Max Markson, the public-relations organiser who has taken former United States president Bill Clinton and former South African president Nelson Mandela to Australia.
He's so busy speaking around the world - there is a two-year waiting list for his services - that there is concern at
the United Nations (UN) that his unpaid role as Middle East envoy is being jeopardised.
A senior UN official was quoted as saying: 'There's a view in the UN that he's not making any progress and that for all the status that he brings to the position, he doesn't seem to be achieving anything.'
Mr Blair has also collected more cash from his speeches than Mr Clinton did in his first year after retiring.
He speaks to audiences that include investment banks, private equity firms and chambers of commerce.
Mr Blair has also addressed the Carlyle Group, a leading private equity investor in military companies.
He also addressed the sovereign wealth fund Kuwait Investment Authority, but was not paid.
For more my paper stories click here.
| 
