The Sunday Times went to discover the truth about Blair Inc.
Sitting at a table sipping Inyange mineral water is Tony Blair. “The desire for spiritual awakening is the defining issue of our times,” says Blair solemnly.
It’s only Brits who don’t appreciate me, says Blair.
Blair’s new political philosophy takes small but neat form in one of Africa’s smallest and poorest countries. In Rwanda, Blair’s charity, the Africa Governance Initiative, pays for a nine-strong team of staff to work permanently in Kigali, many in the president’s office, where they are supporting local ministers and helping to stamp out corruption.
Blair does not miss the politics and the media here. Take religion. What does Blair do for all that cash? Tony Blair is certainly enamoured of being Tony Blair. Few in Israel or the West Bank publicly oppose Blair. Others, however, say Blair’s efforts are more about Blair than Africa. In each African village Blair goes to, there are young children called Tony Blair. The religious piece of the new Blair puzzle is fraught with problems, too. Critics say it can be hard to see where Blair’s political work ends and his private endeavours begin. Blair knows his protestations will not placate his critics. Blair will spend much of his time finishing his memoirs. The Blair decade is done. Rick Warren, America’s most high-profile evangelical pastor, serves on the advisory council of Blair’s Faith Foundation.
In Jerusalem, Blair set out his views on religion in the 21st century to The Sunday Times.
Sitting at a table sipping Inyange mineral water is Tony Blair. “The desire for spiritual awakening is the defining issue of our times,” says Blair solemnly.
It’s only Brits who don’t appreciate me, says Blair.
Blair’s new political philosophy takes small but neat form in one of Africa’s smallest and poorest countries. In Rwanda, Blair’s charity, the Africa Governance Initiative, pays for a nine-strong team of staff to work permanently in Kigali, many in the president’s office, where they are supporting local ministers and helping to stamp out corruption.
Blair does not miss the politics and the media here. Take religion. What does Blair do for all that cash? Tony Blair is certainly enamoured of being Tony Blair. Few in Israel or the West Bank publicly oppose Blair. Others, however, say Blair’s efforts are more about Blair than Africa. In each African village Blair goes to, there are young children called Tony Blair. The religious piece of the new Blair puzzle is fraught with problems, too. Critics say it can be hard to see where Blair’s political work ends and his private endeavours begin. Blair knows his protestations will not placate his critics. Blair will spend much of his time finishing his memoirs. The Blair decade is done. Rick Warren, America’s most high-profile evangelical pastor, serves on the advisory council of Blair’s Faith Foundation.
In Jerusalem, Blair set out his views on religion in the 21st century to The Sunday Times.
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