Showing posts with label MORGANSTANLEY. Show all posts

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Bank Bonus Tab: $33 Billion

JULY 31, 2009

Nine Lenders That Got Government Aid Paid at Least $1 Million to 5,000 Employees

By SUSANNE CRAIG and DEBORAH SOLOMON

Andrew Cuomo

Nine banks that received government aid money paid out bonuses of nearly $33 billion last year -- including more than $1 million apiece to nearly 5,000 employees -- despite huge losses that plunged the U.S. into economic turmoil.

The data, released Thursday by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, provide a rare window into the pay culture of Wall Street, where top employees typically make 90% or more of their compensation in year-end bonuses.

The $32.6 billion in bonuses is one-third larger than California's budget deficit. Six of the nine banks paid out more in bonuses than they received in profit. One in every 270 employees at the banks received more than $1 million.

Overall compensation and benefits at the nine banks fell 11%, to $133.5 billion in 2008 from $149.3 billion in 2007, the Cuomo report said. But with net revenues falling, the percentage of the firms' revenues dedicated to compensation rose to 45% last year from 41% in 2007.

The report reignites long-simmering anger, on Capitol Hill and beyond, over big Wall Street payouts. The nine firms in the report had combined 2008 losses of nearly $100 billion. That helped push the financial system to the brink, leading the government to inject $175 billion into the firms through its Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The chairman of the U.S. House investigative panel, New York Democrat Edolphus Towns, called the pay figures "shocking and appalling" and announced a hearing into compensation practices at banks.

The White House was more muted. "The president continues to believe that the American people don't begrudge people making money for what they do as long as...we're not basically incentivizing wild risk-taking that somebody else picks up the tab for," said White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs.

More
Read the full report from the New York Attorney General's office.
Deal Journal
What Are Your Chances of Being a Millionaire?
Bonus Breakdown From Cuomo's Report

"These pay packages are pretty outrageous," said Michael Baldock, a partner at Stamford, Conn.-based boutique bank Ondra LLP, who has worked at a number of big investment banks. "But if you generate $10 million in revenue a year, another firm will always want that revenue and be willing to pay for it."

In releasing the report now, New York Attorney General Cuomo is vaulting ahead of federal efforts to assess and curb excessive pay. The office has been among the first to investigate and bring charges on several Wall Street abuses this decade.

The House of Representatives is preparing to vote as early as this week on a bill that would give shareholders nonbinding say on pay packages and give regulators more tools to prohibit risky pay practices at banks and other regulated financial firms. The Senate isn't expected to vote on the legislation until the fall.

The Obama administration, meanwhile, is preparing to vet pay at firms receiving "exceptional assistance" from the government. Institutions have until Aug. 13 to submit proposed compensation details for the 100 highest-paid employees at each. The proposals will be reviewed by the Treasury Department's pay czar, Kenneth Feinberg.

Andrew Williams, a Treasury spokesman, said Mr. Cuomo's report "focuses on strengthening the link between pay and performance -- a goal that we share."

Mr. Cuomo said Thursday he hopes his report will prompt the financial firms themselves to significantly overhaul their pay system to reward long-term performance rather than short-term gains. His report didn't release names of individual bonus recipients because of privacy concerns.

"The banks say they pay for performance," Mr. Cuomo said of the data. "Yet in 2008 there was no performance and they still continued to pay out huge sums of money."

Wall Street has shown little sign of slowing down the pay train this year. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley recently disclosed that they have set aside $11 billion and $6 billion in compensation and benefits respectively for their employees so far this year. Goldman's second quarter was among its best ever. Morgan Stanley lost money for its third straight quarter.

Goldman and Morgan Stanley declined to comment on the report.

Meanwhile, some big banks that received government bailouts, including Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp., are offering handsome pay packages to lure stars. Citigroup -- which received about 25% of the aid going to the nine banks -- has the No. 1 pay recipient. Andrew Hall, the trader who heads Citigroup's energy-trading unit Phibro LLC, received $98.9 million in 2008, according to a government official. Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit, by comparison, received more than $38 million last year.

An early test for Mr. Feinberg will be the pay of Mr. Hall, whose profit-sharing contract with the bank could again entitle him to as much as $100 million, say people familiar with the matter.

James Forese, Citigroup co-head of global markets, cited Phibro's "consistent track record of profitability" and said its contracts directly align compensation with performance. "That said, we are sensitive to the need for a full review of compensation practices in our industry," he said. "We are evaluating the best way forward for stakeholders."

The group of nine's No. 2 bonus for last year, according to a government official, was the $39.4 million that went to Bank of America's Thomas Montag. In 2008, Mr. Montag was sales and trading chief at Merrill Lynch, which got crushed by billions of dollars in mortgage-related losses and was sold last year to Bank of America. Mr. Montag's pay package included stock grants, which since have fallen in value.

Bank of America said bonuses for Merrill Lynch were shared among 30,000 employees and Bank of America's figures cover more than 200,000 employees.

The study found that pay at the banks remained near previous levels despite revenue declines. Merrill's net revenue fell by $23 billion in 2008, leading to a huge net loss. The firm's pay and benefits dropped by $1.1 billion, or 7%, according to the study. At Citigroup, revenue fell by $28 billion, or 34%. Pay and benefits dropped $2 billion, or 6%.

Similarly, at Goldman and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., pay fell less sharply than revenue in 2008. Both firms have paid back the government loans they received under TARP.

J.P. Morgan declined to comment on the report.

Goldman, Morgan Stanley and Merrill, Wall Street's three largest securities firms in 2008, paid nearly $13 billion in bonuses last year, the report says. That was roughly one-third of their total pay and benefits of $38 billion, according to securities filings.

J.P. Morgan topped other banks in the number of employees receiving $1 million or more -- 1,626 out of its 224,961 employees. This figure includes bonus, salary and options; the numbers of other banks in the study includes bonuses only.

J.P. Morgan's top earner collected $29 million, more than James Dimon, the firm's chief executive, who received $19.7 million in total compensation last year.

Goldman paid the most per employee, about $160,000 each for more than 30,067 staffers. Some 212 Goldman bankers made $3 million or more. Goldman, which weathered the credit crisis better than most rivals and made $2.3 billion in 2008, also produced the most revenue per employee, $77,228.

Goldman has said that no partner got a bonus of more than $222,500 in cash. The rest was paid in deferred stock, with an extra year of service required for any of it to vest.

Morgan Stanley had 428 employees who received bonuses of $1 million or more. In addition, 10 people received bonuses of $10 million or more, for a combined $146.8 million.

Wells Fargo & Co., Bank of New York Mellon Corp. and State Street Corp. round out the nine banks. Each declined to comment.

—Aaron Lucchetti, Daniel Fitzpatrick and Robin Sidel contributed to this article.
Write to Susanne Craig at susanne.craig@wsj.com and Deborah Solomon at deborah.solomon@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A1

Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124896891815094085.html

P.S. What do people expect?

The whole Bail-Out concept is a fraud and a travesty of law.

Who lends the Treasury the BILLIONS, so they can in turn lend it to the Banks?

It's the Federal Reserve, right?

Well, who is the Federal Reserve? A conglomerate of Banks. Some of which are the same banks to whom the billions of Bail-Out Dollars went to.

Such as JP Morgan Chase, CitiCorp, etc.

It's like the snake swallowing its tail. It's a win-win propositon.

Except, that in this case the taxpayers are left holding the bag, in debt with astronomical figures for ages to come.

No Bail-Out's for them, no BILLIONS, just bills for ever!

Meanwhile, the Banks "laugh all the way to the bank".

What a sham! What a scam!

Yet, they say: Make mine Bud-Light!

YEAH, VERY LIGHT, INDEED.

I'M BEGINNING TO SEE, THE LIGHT!

Sunday, February 01, 2009

Hands Out For The Bailout

HANDS OUT FOR THE BAILOUT

By Derry Brownfield
February 1, 2009

NewsWithViews.com

Everybody wants in on the act. The banks, the auto industry, even foreign banks think Uncle Sam’s money must grow on a tree somewhere on federal lands here in the U.S. It’s like writing a letter to Santa Claus and waiting for stockings to be filled. $700 billion to the “Troubled Asset Relief Program,” $200 billion to “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,” $29 billion to “Bear Stearns,” $123 billion for “AIG,” $300 billion for the “Federal Housing Administration Rescue Bill,” $87 billion for “JP Morgan Chase” for financing bad trades made by Lehman Brothers, the Big Three Auto Manufacturers have their hands out, and what about those poor bankers around the world?

We should give or loan the Central Banks of Canada, England, Japan, Denmark, Europe, Norway, Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Singapore a total of about $750 billion dollars. As I have stated many times, I was one of those unfortunate farmers back in the l980’s that couldn’t pay 20% interest on our farm loans. Farmers who had borrowed more money than their total assets were worth were foreclosed upon and the COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (CED) said: “this is a good thing.” The CED wrote a Statement on National Agricultural Policy in 1956, saying there were too many farmers and the inefficient ones should be eliminated. The policy statement said: “The movement of people from farms is important to the industrial sectors of the economy as well as to agriculture.” No bailout policy for financially strapped farmers was even considered.

Based on that philosophy, there are already too many banks and these inefficient banks should be allowed to fail, but this isn’t going to happen. Our government through the actions of the Federal Reserve will keep printing fiat dollars, and using the money to bail out failing banks, corporations, or even home owners, until the entire nation fails, due to our “debt money system.”

Unlike our Federal Government, if I personally had the money to bail out a failing corporation or any business that has allowed its executives to do stupid things and make stupid mistakes, I would call a meeting of the shareholders and let them know that if they want this bail-out they must fire those who have allowed the company to get into the financial mess. Oliver Cromwell was an English political leader, who in the 1600’s once told a group: “You have sat here too long for any good you have been doing. Depart, I say, and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!” They should “GO” without their last month’s salary and get NO benefits for leaving. But, that isn’t the way it works in this modern global society run by socialist politicians. AIG was in the process of receiving $123 billion in handouts and decided to use some of the money to have a BIG party. Public pressure was so great that when it was time to hold another junket the entire staff went incognito. According to reporters for abc15.com (KNXV) “while the company was pleading the federal government for another $40 billion dollars in loans, AIG top executives held a secret gathering at a luxury resort in Phoenix. Reporters photographed the AIG executives on hidden cameras at the Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak Resort, despite apparent efforts by the company to disguise its involvement. AIG made significant efforts to disguise the conference, making sure there were no AIG logos or signs anywhere on the property.”

Even as Chrysler cuts thousands of jobs and seeks federal aid to survive, the company still plans to pay about $30 million in retention bonuses to keep about 40 top executives. The Detroit Free Press reported that at least six Chrysler executives are due to receive bonuses of more than $1 million each to stay through August 2009. The bonus plan includes $1.89 million for manufacturing chief Frank Ewasyshyn, $1.8 million for product development chief Frank Klegon and $l.63 million for Steven Landry, executive vice-president of North American sales. Would tar and feathers be in order, or would handcuffs and jail cells be more appropriate?

You and I as US citizens and taxpayers are not even supposed to know how this money is being used. November 10th, Bloomberg News reported; “The Federal Reserve is refusing to identify the recipients of almost $2 trillion of emergency loans from American taxpayers or the troubled assets the central bank is accepting as collateral. Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said in September they would comply with congressional demands for transparency in a $700 billion bailout of the banking system. Two months later, as the Fed lends far more than that in separate rescue programs that didn’t require approval by Congress, Americans have no idea where their money is going or what securities the banks are pledging in return.”

The fox is in the chicken coop, and our Federal Reserve bankers put him there. The man who was in charge of “risk” at Bear Stearns has been hired by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to “SUPERVISE THE FINANCIAL SAFETY AND SOUNDNESS OF U.S. BANKS.” Michael Alix is now Vice President in the bank supervision group of the New York FED. He spent 12 years working at Bear Stearns, ten of which he was head of “worldwide risk management.” He was named “chief risk officer” in 2006 and held the job when the government helped rescue the bank. This can be compared to a college football coach that never had a winning season, becoming head coach for the Green Bay Packers!

In a NewsWithViews article dated, November 9, Roger Fredinburg summed up my sentiments when he wrote: “The only bailout in the news should be stories of our politicians and their felonious friends being bailed out of jail and smuggled out of the country. As a matter of fact, I think we might consider banishing them and sending them to live on a cold frozen continent more fitting with their cruel, frigid and selfish hearts. I suggest an outdoor nudist colony in Greenland.”

© 2009 Derry Brownfield - All Rights Reserved

Web Site: www.derrybrownfield.com
E-Mail: derrybrownfield@learfield.com

Source: http://www.newswithviews.com/brownfield/brownfield171.htm

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Power Players: Struggling Financial Firms Are Banking on Dodd

Published by Lindsay Renick Mayer on January 27, 2009 11:39 AM

Name: Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.)Position: Although Dodd is chair of one of the more powerful congressional committees, he probably isn't the envy of his peers these days with an economic crisis growing larger by the day. Dodd has put in two years as chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs and is now charged with shaping legislation to jump-start the economy and help floundering companies. His committee oversees the nation's financial institutions, housing and mass transit programs. Although he hasn't spent much time as chair, he's been in Congress for more than three decades.

Money Summary: Dodd has raised a total of $43.1 million since 1989 and has spent $43.2 million. His large war chest can be attributed, in part, to his presidential bid in 2008, which he abandoned after receiving less than 1 percent of the vote in the Iowa caucus that kicked off the primary season. He raised $18 million total in his attempt to win the White House. Overall, he's received 62 percent of his contributions from individuals (rather than the political action committees of unions and corporations) and is a popular Wall Street target, collecting $5.2 million from donors in New York, more than any other metro area. He's given other lawmakers and candidates 23 percent of the total $2.3 million that his leadership PAC, Chris PAC, has raised since the 2004 election cycle.

Campaigns Donors: Not surprisingly, Dodd's most generous sector is finance, insurance and real estate, which is filled with companies that are directly affected by legislation that comes out of the Banking Committee. The finance, insurance and real estate sector has given Dodd a total of $13.2 million since 1989, distantly followed by lawyers and law firms, which have given $3.7 million. The securities and investment industry, real estate industry, insurance companies, commercial banks, accountants and finance and credit companies all rank among his top 20 industry donors. In 2008, Dodd was among the top five recipients of money in the Senate from 21 industries, many of which are finance-related. He has received more money from hedge funds over time than all but two other lawmakers ($761,250), and expressed concern over a bill in 2007 that would have increased taxes on private-equity firms and hedge fund managers. Hedge funds are a big industry in Connecticut, his home state.

Dodd's most generous donors include many of the companies that have filed for bankruptcy or sought government help over the last six months: Citigroup ($428,300), Morgan Stanley ($211,300), American Insurance Group ($280,250) and Lehman Brothers ($154,300). Despite the companies' support, when the Senate was called on this month to release the second half of the $700 billion bailout money, Dodd called for stronger oversight provisions and limits on executive compensation for the companies receiving a handout.

Not all of Dodd's supporters come from Wall Street, however. Lobbyists, pharmaceutical companies and health professionals also rank among his most generous industries. During the race for the White House, the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) endorsed Dodd and spent $202,300 independently to see him win. Dodd has sponsored bills to provide more funding to fire stations for equipment, training and staff.

Industry Favors: "No lawmaker has done more for firefighters in this nation than Chris Dodd," said Jeff Zack, spokesman for the IAFF. "Every time firefighters in this country say they need something, he's stood up and said 'I'm with you,' and he has not only said 'sign me on,' he's said 'let me write the bill.'

"Invests in: Compared to the rest of the Senate, Dodd is middle class. In 2007 he was worth between $629,019 and $2.1 million, ranking him 56th among all senators. At that time he had at least $100,001 invested in Blockbuster and drug makers Cardiome Pharma Corp. and Javelin Pharmaceuticals.

Other Money Matters: When mortgage buyers Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were in dire financial straits last year and seeking help from the government, Dodd came under some fire for having received more money from the two companies' employees and political action committees than any other lawmaker over time, at $133,900. Dodd helped push through a rescue plan for the two companies last year, including better regulatory oversight in the measure.

In His Own Words: "This is not a time to be panicking about this. These are viable, strong institutions," Dodd said of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac at a press conference in July 2008, when the federal government came to the rescue of the institutions. "These two are fundamentally, fundamentally strong. There's no reason for the kind of reaction we're getting."

Source: http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2009/01/power-players-struggling-finan.html

Thursday, January 10, 2008

TONY BLAIR: HOB NOB EXTRAORDINAIRE?

Tony Blair: hob nob extraordinaire?

[V]illionaire

With Tony Blair's recent conversion to the Roman Catholic religion, and his headline grabbing new job offer, I thought it fitting to demonstrate the web of influence that the former British Prime Minister can boast of. Here, I will analytically substantiate the connections that Tony Blair has, and show how they intertwine neatly to form a "Genetic Strand" of the New World Order. Do yo see the what I see? All roads lead to Rome... Follow the threads (treads)...

*********

January 10, 2008

Tony Blair to take up £500,000 job as political adviser to US company

Tony Blair is to take a job with JPMorgan Chase,

the international financial services and investment banking group, The Times learnt last night.

The former Prime Minister is to be a political adviser to the American firm which operates in more than 50 countries and whose assets are put at $1.5 trillion, with interests also in commercial banking and private equity.

Sources said last night that Mr Blair would advise the bank on global political issues. His salary is unknown but is likely to be more than £500,000.

Jamie Dimon, chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, said Mr Blair would be “enormously valuable” to the company. “There are only a handful of people in the world who have the knowledge and relationships that he has.”

Early history

The earliest origin of the Council stemmed from a working fellowship of about 150 distinguished scholars, called "The Inquiry," tasked to brief President Woodrow Wilson about options for the postwar world when Germany was defeated. Through 1917-18, this academic band, including Wilson's closest adviser and long-time friend Col. Edward M. House, as well as Walter Lippmann, gathered discreetly^{[citation needed]} at 155th Street and Broadway in New York City, to assemble the strategy for the postwar world. The team produced more than 2,000 documents detailing and analyzing the political, economic, and social facts globally that would be helpful for Wilson in the peace talks. Their reports formed the basis for the Fourteen Points, which outlined Wilson's strategy for peace after war's end.^[4]

These scholars then traveled to the Paris Peace Conference, 1919 that would end the war; it was at one of the meetings of a small group of British and American diplomats and scholars, on May 30, 1919, at the Hotel Majestic, that both the Council and its British counterpart, the Chatham House in London, were born.[1] Although the original intent was for the two organizations to be affiliated, they became independent bodies, yet retained close informal ties.^[5]

Some of the participants at that meeting were, apart from Edward House, Paul Warburg, Herbert Hoover, Harold Temperley, Lionel Curtis, Lord Eustace Percy, Christian Herter, and American academic historians James Thomson Shotwell of Columbia University, Archibald Cary Coolidge of Harvard and Charles Seymour of Yale.

Morgan and Rockefeller involvement

The Americans who subsequently returned from the conference became drawn to a discreet club of New York financiers and international lawyers who had organized previously in June 1918 and was headed by Elihu Root, J. P. Morgan's lawyer;^[13] this select group called itself the Council on Foreign Relations.^[14] They joined this group and the Council was formally established in New York on July 29, 1921, with 108 founding members, including Elihu Root as a leading member and John W. Davis, the chief counsel for J. P. Morgan & Co. and former Solicitor General for President Wilson,^[15] as its founding president. Davis was to become Democratic presidential candidate in 1924.

Other members included John Foster Dulles, Herbert H. Lehman, Henry L. Stimson, Averell Harriman, the Rockefeller family's public relations expert, Ivy Lee,^[16] and Paul M. Warburg and Otto H. Kahn of the law firm Kuhn, Loeb.^[17]

The Council initially had strong connections to the Morgan interests, such as the lawyer, Paul Cravath, whose pre-eminent New York law firm (later named Cravath, Swaine & Moore) represented Morgan businesses; a Morgan partner, Russell Cornell Leffingwell, later became its first chairman. The head of the group's finance committee was Alexander Hemphill, chairman of Morgan's Guaranty Trust Company. Economist Edwin F. Gay, editor of the New York Evening Post, owned by Morgan partner Thomas W. Lamont, served as Secretary-Treasurer of the organization. Other members related to Morgan included Frank L. Polk, former Under-Secretary of State and attorney for J.P. Morgan & Co. Former Wilson Under-Secretary of State Norman H. Davis was a banking associate of the Morgans.^[18] Over time, however, the locus of power shifted inexorably to the Rockefeller family. Paul Cravath's law firm also represented the Rockefeller family.^[19]

Edwin Gay suggested the creation of a quarterly journal, Foreign Affairs. He recommended Archibald Cary Coolidge be installed as the first editor, along with his New York Evening Post reporter, Hamilton Fish Armstrong, as assistant editor and executive director of the Council.^[20]

Even from its inception, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. was a regular benefactor, making annual contributions, as well as a large gift of money towards its first headquarters on East 65th Street, along with corporate donors (Perloff 156). In 1944, the widow of the Standard Oil executive Harold I. Pratt donated the family's four-story mansion on the corner of 68th Street and Park Avenue for council use and this became the CFR's new headquarters, known as The Harold Pratt House, where it remains today.

Several of Rockefeller's sons joined the council when they came of age; David Rockefeller joined the council as its youngest-ever director in 1949 and subsequently became chairman of the board from 1970 to 1985; today he serves as honorary chairman.^[21] The major philanthropic organization he founded with his brothers in 1940, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, has also provided funding to the Council, from 1953 to at least 1980.^[22]

Another major support base from the outset was the corporate sector; around 26 corporations provided financial assistance in the 1920s, seizing the opportunity to inject their business concerns into the weighty deliberations of the academics and scholars in the Council's ruling elite. In addition, the Carnegie Corporation contributed funds in 1937 to expand the Council's reach by replicating its structure in a diminished form in eight American cities.^[23]

John J. McCloy became an influential figure in the organization after the Second World War, and he held connections to both the Morgans and Rockefellers. As assistant to Secretary of War (and J. P. Morgan attorney) Henry Stimson during World War II, he had presided over important American war policies; his brother-in-law John Zinsser was on the board of directors of JP Morgan & Co. during that time, and after the war McCloy joined New York law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hope, Hadley & McCloy as a partner. The company had long served as legal counsel to the Rockefeller family and the Chase Manhattan bank. McCloy became Chairman of the Board of Chase Manhattan, a director of the Rockefeller Foundation and Chairman of the Board of the CFR from 1953 to 1970. President Harry S. Truman appointed him President of the World Bank Group and U.S. High Commissioner to Germany. He served as a special adviser on disarmament to President John F. Kennedy and chaired a special committee on the Cuban crisis. He was said to have had the largest influence on American foreign policy of anyone after World War II. McCloy's brother-in-law, Lewis W. Douglas, also served on the board of the CFR and as a trustee for the Rockefeller Foundation; Truman appointed him as American ambassador to Great Britain.^[24]4

Mixed reaction for plan to make Blair Middle East envoy

· Backing from US, Israel and Fatah leadership
· Moscow unlikely to want retiring PM as spokesman

Julian Borger, diplomatic editor and Ian Black, Middle East editor
Friday June 22, 2007
The Guardian

Tony Blair is keen to become the international community's Middle East envoy after leaving Downing Street and has the support of the US, Israel and the Palestinian Fatah leadership, the Guardian has learned. However, a formal job offer depends on the agreement of the international quartet attempting to salvage the Israeli-Palestinian peace process: the US, Europe, the United Nations and Russia.

The greatest obstacle is Moscow, which has had an increasingly combative relationship with the Blair government, particularly over the poisoning of the Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko.

The Bush administration has been the driving force behind the Blair candidacy but many Middle East observers see the job as a poisoned chalice. Since the last quartet envoy, James Wolfensohn, a former World Bank president, resigned in April 2006, conditions in the Palestinian territories have worsened markedly.Nevertheless, both Israel and Palestinians loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas said they would welcome Mr Blair as a special envoy. Zvi Heifetz, Israel's ambassador to London, said: "It's an excellent idea. There is no better person for this job. He has been dealing with the Middle East for 10 years, and he has been objective and balanced."...5

Blair received into Catholic Church in private Mass at cardinal's home

Tony Blair has long celebrated his religious faith and now joins his family as a Catholic. Pictures: PA

CARDINAL Keith O'Brien, the Archbishop of Edinburgh, last night welcomed Tony Blair, the former prime minister, into the Roman Catholic Church.

Mr Blair made the long- predicted conversion at a special service on Friday conducted by the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, and his private secretary, Monsignor Mark O'Toole.

Mr Blair joins his wife Cherie and four children in the Roman Catholic faith.

Cardinal O'Brien told The Scotsman: "I was very happy to hear that Tony Blair had been received into the Catholic Church.

"He had obviously spent a long time considering God's call. Now I join with others in wishing him and his family every blessing as they go forward together in one faith."

Following the special Mass at the archbishop's house in Westminster, attended by Mrs Blair and their children, Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor – the leading Roman Catholic in England and Wales – said the service was "very intimate, very prayerful". The Vatican has also welcomed Mr Blair's decision to become a Catholic.

It comes as research suggests Catholic churchgoers now outnumber Anglicans in the UK for the first time in 500 years.

A Vatican spokesman said such an "authoritative personality" choosing to join the Catholic Church "could only give rise to joy and respect".

Last year, Mr Blair, who is now a Middle East peace envoy, said he had prayed to God when deciding whether or not to send UK troops into Iraq.

It had been an open secret that Mr Blair had been taking instruction from a Catholic priest as a prelude to conversion.

Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, wished the former prime minister well in his spiritual journey.

Dr Williams said: "A great Catholic writer of the last century said that the only reason for moving from one Christian family to another was to deepen one's relationship with God.

"I pray that this will be the result of Tony Blair's decision in his personal life."

But the former Tory minister Ann Widdecombe – herself a Catholic convert – said Mr Blair's voting record as an MP had often "gone against Church teaching" and that his conversion raised some questions.

The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) reacted with surprise to the news of Mr Blair's conversion.

John Smeaton, its national director, said: "During his premiership Tony Blair became one of the world's most significant architects of the culture of death, promoting abortion, experimentation on unborn embryos, including cloned embryos, and euthanasia by neglect.

"SPUC is writing to Tony Blair to ask him whether he has repented of the anti-life positions he has so openly advocated throughout his political career."

There has never been a Roman Catholic prime minister of Britain, although there is no constitutional barrier to such a move.

However, it had been suggested in the past that Mr Blair would wait until after leaving office, to avoid possible clashes such as that of the role in appointing Church of England bishops.

A RELIGIOUS OFFICE

TONY Blair's formal conversion appears to have taken a number of months and it is thought his decision followed a period of contemplation rather than a "falling out" with the Church of England over an issue such as the ordination of women priests.

The move comes after years of speculation that Mr Blair would convert from Anglicanism after he resigned from No 10 in June.

Converting while in office would have caused him problems in connection with issues such as abortion, contraception, homosexuality and faith schools.

Mr Blair's former spokesman, Alastair Campbell, once famously told reporters "We don't do God", but has since said that his former boss "does do God in quite a big way".

Even while in office, Mr Blair attended Catholic services with his family, but did not participate fully.

The full article contains 638 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

Last Updated: 23 December 2007 10:42 PM. 6

Article Footnotes:

A http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article3162665.ece

1 http://politics.guardian.co.uk/thinktanks/page/0,,1538994,00.html

2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatham_House

3 http://www.cfr.org/

4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_on_Foreign_Relations

5 http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,2108848,00.html

6 http://news.scotsman.com/uk/Blair-received-into-Catholic-Church.3617088.jp

Note: Extensive Bolds, Large Fonts, and Highlights used for emphasis. Blogman.

EndrTimes