By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
November 10 --
After it was
reported that
Tony
Blair's
company has a
41,000 pounds
a month
contract
lobbying for
PetroSaudi,
while Blair is
the envoy of
the UN /
Quartet on the
Middle East,
Inner City
Press on
November 10
asked the UN
if this isn't
a conflict of
interest. Video here.
UN
deputy
spokesperson
Farhan Haq
first said the
question
should be put
to "Tony Blair
Associates."
Inner City
Press asked if
it isn't a UN
determination
to make. Haq
replied that
it is for the
Quartet, for
which he will
not speak. Ban
is a member of
the Quartet.
What is Ban's
view? We will
continue to
ask.
Nearly a year
ago in
November 2013
Tony Blair was
in the UN
talking about
terrorism.
Inner
City Press
asked then,
can't there be
conflicts of
interest
between this
work and the
money he
receives from
banks like
JPMorgan Chase
(which just
settled
predatory
lending
related
charges for
$13 billion),
and from
countries like
Kazakhstan?
After
the UN
repeatedly
refused to
answer this
question when
Inner City
Press asked
it, at a
stakeout on
Thursday Inner
City Press put
it directly to
Blair: can you
address the
potential
conflicts of
interest?
Blair
replied,
"There never
is" a conflict
of interest.
He did not
answer about
the Quartet,
but only his
foundation,
which he says
is "separate"
and works in
35 countries.
He
concluded
before walking
away that "I
just point out
that I
actually spend
the vast bulk
of my time on
pro bono
work." Video
here.
Vast
bulk is what
percent? And
what is
Kazakhstan
paying $11
million for?
Who else is
paying what?
Back
on March 14 of
this year
Inner City
Press asked
the UN
spokesperson:
Inner
City
Press: Tony
Blair, who has
a role in the
Quartet and
for the UN in
the occupied
territories,
is receiving a
salary of
$11.7 million
a year from
Kazakhstan.
And I wanted
to know
whether this
could be
viewed as any
kind of a
conflict of
interest,
whether
apparently he
doesn’t file
at least a
public,
financial
disclosure. I
wanted to know
whether he
does, given
his UN role,
do a financial
disclosure to
the UN and
whether direct
payment by a
Government
could be
viewed as a
conflict of
interest given
his role, his
UN service.
Deputy
Spokesperson:
We’ll have to
check on that,
Matthew, I
don’t have
anything on
that.
[The
Deputy
Spokesperson
later said
that Mr. Blair
is not a staff
member of the
United
Nations, and
that any
questions on
this issue
should be
referred to
his office.]
Blair's
office
doesn't
respond. But
on November
21, 2013 when
Inner City
Press asked,
Blair did
respond --
sort of --
that "I
actually spend
the vast bulk
of my time on
pro bono
work." So what
is Kazakhstan
paying $11.7
million a year
for? Watch
this site.
, 
