Topic: Michael Levy

Michael Abraham Levy, Baron Levy, (born 11 July 1944) is President of Jews' Free School, a Labour member of the House of Lords and formerly the chief fundraiser for the UK Labour Party and several Jewish and Israeli charities. A long-standing friend of former Prime Minister, Tony Blair, Lord Levy spent nine years from 1998 as Tony Blair's special envoy to the Middle East , being replaced by Gordon Brown's appointee, Michael Williams, from September 2007. Levy was arrested and questioned in connection with the "Cash for Honours" inquiry by the Metropolitan Police on 12 July 2006. After six hours of questioning he was released on police bail. On 20 September 2006 he was questioned a second time, and again released on bail. On 30 January 2007 Lord Levy was arrested on suspicion of conspiring to pervert the course of justice. On Wednesday 23 March 2007 Lord Levy issued a statement announcing that he would leave his position as special envoy to the Middle East on 27 June 2007, the day that Tony Blair also left office.. On 20 July 2007, the Crown Prosecution Service announced that Lord Levy was not to be prosecuted in connection with the so called "Cash for Honours" affair.

Born in Stoke Newington, North London, to devout Jewish immigrant parents of modest means, Levy was educated at Grocers, later known as Hackney Downs Grammar School.

Initially working as an accountant, he made his fortune during the 1960s and 1970s as an impresario, managing singers such as Alvin Stardust and Chris Rea. He founded Magnet Records, the home of the popular 1980s ska band Bad Manners. Levy sold Magnet Records to Warner Brothers in 1988 for £10m. Guitarist Chris Rea, said of Levy, "He is extremely tough, one of the hardest bastards I have ever met, but I would leave my children with him rather than anyone else." The music producer Pete Waterman described him as "the greatest salesman I have ever met. He would be able to sell sand to the Arabs." (ref).