Blair to earn '£2,000-a-minute' as paid speaker - papers

The former Prime Minister has agreed to deliver four speeches for Lansdowne Partners - one of Britain's biggest hedge funds, whose founders include Paul Ruddock, a major Conservative donor. Alongside Bill Clinton, the former US President, Mr Blair commands the highest fees on the speech-making circuit, and it is thought that Lansdowne is paying him hundreds of thousands of pounds, writes the Times. The dates are still to be fixed, but he expects to give four speeches on geo-political issues this year. Full story...