'Cliched, Stale, Money-raking' - Blair Not Quite the Toast of China

When Tony Blair swept through China this week for a succession of events and speeches, he might have hoped to generate shimmering headlines about his views on the resurgent world power.

One of his addresses was, after all, entitled "From Greatness to Brilliance". So it will no doubt come as a rude surprise to discover that some of his hosts were less than impressed with his appearances - particularly the whopping fees reportedly paid to secure his services.

Official Chinese media have been abuzz with details of Mr Blair's engagements. A speech in Hong Kong to the General Chamber of Commerce commanded a six-figure sum, according to chamber sources.

An appearance at Dongguan City, near Hong Kong, cost £237,000, said the Guangzhou Daily News. The organizers even threw in a luxury villa worth 38m yuan (£2.4m), though there is no indication that Mr Blair accepted the offer.

But some observers were not sure they got value for money. Mr Blair's Dongguan speech, delivered after a tour of industrial parks and villa complexes in the booming manufacturing center, dwelt not just on economic growth but on his personal links with the country (his sister-in-law is Chinese. His seven-year-old son, Leo, is learning Mandarin at school).

"China is a very special country, and has a special place in the heart of my family," he reportedly said.

But in the China Youth Daily, Deng Qingbo sneered: "Frankly, we are very familiar with all this - it's just like listening to any county or city official's reports. If so, why pay such a high price to hear the same thing? Is it worth the money? Do these thoughts multiply in value because they come from the mouth of a retired prime minister?"

According to the Guangzhou Daily News, Mr Blair's take-home pay would have been £156,000 after taxes were deducted. It called the Dongguan stop one of his "money-raking" trips in China.

China Youth Daily said the speech was full of pleasantries, cliches and platitudes about the importance of collaboration between government and business, education and the environment, but failed to provide any new insights.

"Is the country to become a market where international celebrities come digging for gold?" the paper asked. "We should exercise less ostentation and vanity. We need more genuinely fresh knowledge - especially when we are spending the taxpayers' pennies."

After Dongguan, Mr Blair continued his hectic schedule and flew to Beijing, where in his role as envoy of the Quartet of Middle East peacemakers he met Tang Jiaxuan, a state councilor dealing with foreign affairs. On Wednesday he spoke to the Business Week Global Chief Executive Officers' Forum. Reporters were barred from the hall and only allowed to listen to the speech via a closed circuit television feed. But transmission was cut during a question and answer session.

That followed the £230-a-head dinner organized by the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce at the five-star Marriott hotel. "He was really a great speaker," said one delighted guest. "The crowd loved it. We all felt very upbeat."

A day earlier Mr Blair was in Jerusalem giving a speech at a gala dinner of the Saban Forum think tank in the prestigious King David Hotel. His keynote address was followed by another by Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, with whom he is collaborating in attempts to bring Israelis and Palestinians to the negotiating table. No fee was paid, a spokeswoman for the Washington-based forum confirmed.

Not all his reviews have been bad. In Washington last month he won three standing ovations at a charity event for a speech that highlighted the danger from Iran and Muslim extremism - one of four which reportedly netted him £300,000.

Still, some believe Mr Blair's relentless globe trotting schedule may be taking its toll.

"He didn't look as polished as he was the last time he was here," said a guest at this week's Hong Kong dinner. "He looked as if he'd been on a lot of planes, and he has - and he forgot he'd been here only a couple of years ago - but he was good, yes."

The money

£237k

The cost of one appearance by Tony Blair at Dongguan City

£156k

Mr Blair's reported take-home pay from the Dongguan speech after tax

£230

The cost per head of a dinner in Hong Kong at which Mr Blair appeared