LONDON, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is planning to write a memoir, has retained the U.S. lawyer who negotiated book deals for the Clintons.
Robert Barnett arranged a $16 million deal for former President Bill Clinton and $12 million for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.
Blair needs money because he and his wife owe millions of dollars on mortgages, The (London) Telegraph reported. They purchased a house in London’s Connaught Square for 3.65 million pounds ($7.3 million), reportedly receiving a 95 percent mortgage based on future earnings from the former prime minister's memoirs and speaking engagements.
The book will not hit stores for some time because Blair is believed to have promised his successor, Gordon Brown, that it would not be published until after a general election. Juicy details about the relationship between Blair and his chancellor of the exchequer could provide grist for the Conservative mill.
Blair’s memoirs are expected to do well in the United States because of his high profile there.
