HOW DAVE COULD RAKE IN MILLIONS
Huge deal for memoirs ... then he’s poised to follow Blair on to £¼m a time speaking circuit
DAVID Cameron is now set to make millions of pounds outside politics despite never having had a ‘real’ job.
He is poised to follow the lead of Tony Blair, who has made an estimated £100million since leaving Downing Street in 2007.
At 49, Mr Cameron is five years younger than Mr Blair was when he quit as an MP.
Friends say he intends to start by writing his memoirs – which could attract an advance higher than the £4.6million paid to Mr Blair for his autobiography, A Journey, published in 2010. The former Labour PM donated the advance and all royalties to the Royal British Legion. Friends say Mr Cameron will quickly join the elite speaking circuit, where Mr Blair made up to £250,000 a time giving talks.
Mr Cameron yesterday hinted he will seek a big job in public life – with an announcement due within weeks.
He said: ‘I’ll want to continue campaigning on local, national and international level issues that were part of my prime ministership, where I think we made some good progress.’
This triggered speculation he was looking to run an international organisation dealing with issues such as aid.
Outside politics, the former Tory PM has never had a conventional job, aside from a three-year stint in PR at television company Carlton Communications.
His life has been consumed by politics and even after losing the Brexit vote, he dismissed an interviewer’s suggestion he could ‘do a Blair and make some money’.
He insisted on July 8: ‘It’s my intention to continue serving as an MP and helping represent the interests of the people of West Oxfordshire and anything else I do will come a bit later.’
But the lure of earning millions, it seems, has proved a stronger draw. Mr Cameron is likely to take it slowly, having witnessed the public criticism directed at Mr Blair.
But his wide network of contacts, experience on the world stage and relative youth mean he will surely not hold back for long. One of his former minising ters told the Mail last night: ‘Of course he will get rich – or richer, as he is already independently wealthy. He’ll write his memoirs and this will put his currency up.
‘He can make a fortune on the speaking circuit, especially in America where they are puzzled by Brexit and will warm to him, as he is very personable. He will also probably collect a handful of directorships worth £50,000 to £100,000 each, and he could start build- up a property portfolio like the Blairs.’
The Blairs own 38 homes worth around £32million.
Mr Cameron’s friends insisted he would not follow Mr Blair’s lead. One said: ‘Don’t expect to see him popping up on the board at Morgan Stanley.’ Another said: ‘He is going to stay away from the banks – but he’s also going to have a life. He’ll set out his plans soon enough.’
The Camerons are currently staying in a £4million house in Chelsea belonging to financier and old friend Dominic Johnson, a freebie worth £2,650 a week. They plan to stay until the end of October, when the tenants at their family home in Notting Hill move out.
They have been pocketing up to £7,000 a month from the lodgers, but are keen to regain the £2million Edwardian home. It has great sentimental value to them, as it was where they were living with their eldest son Ivan, who died suddenly in 2009 aged six.
The family also own a £1.3million stone cottage in Oxfordshire, near Chipping Norton.
Gordon Brown has taken unpaid roles at the World Economic Forum and as a UN special envoy on global education, plus a paid role that helps fund his charitable foundation.
Ruth Davidson has ruled herself out of taking on David Cameron’s constituency.
The Scottish Tory leader was forced to deny social media speculation she would stand in the Witney by-election.
Ladbrokes was last night offering odd of 16/1 for Miss Davidson to make the move to the House of Commons, but she told her Twitter followers to ‘save your money’.
Nationalist MP Stewart McDonald tweeted: ‘Lots of Tories in Westminster want Ruth Davidson down here. Cameron’s resignation provides the perfect opportunity. Will they convince her?’
But a Scottish Tory spokesman said: ‘That won’t be happening. Ruth is entirely focused on being a strong opposition to the SNP in Scotland.’
‘He will get rich, or richer’