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The Tony Blair Institute, the non-profit organisation set up by the former UK prime minister, fell to a $2.2mn loss last year after a sharp increase in operating costs overshadowed a 20 per cent rise in revenues.
The institute, which advises more than 40 governments worldwide, reported a 60 per cent jump in operating expenses to $152.7mn, according to 2023 accounts published on its website.
TBI said the jump in expenditure was driven by rising staff costs and investment in regional expansion. The annual loss followed a $16.8mn surplus in 2022. Sales for 2023 came in at $145.3mn.
The think-tank makes most of its income from deploying its roster of advisers, which includes former Finnish premier Sanna Marin, to counsel governments on areas ranging from strategy to policy and technology.
It employed an average of 719 staff during 2023, up from 514 in 2022. At the end of last year, it had 874 employees.
Sir Tony Blair, who serves as the institute’s executive chair, often acts as the first point of contact for leaders seeking advice. He then sends in teams to work with the governments concerned.
TBI made $125.7mn in sales from “advisory” work in 2023, the accounts show, while its “strategy and partnerships” and “policy” divisions reported revenues of $10.7mn and $8.1mn respectively during the period.
Blair left Downing Street in 2007 after a decade in power and after becoming a hate figure for some in the Labour party over his role in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Since leaving Number 10 he has dispensed advice to foreign leaders, some with poor human rights records, and become an advocate for the transformative power of artificial intelligence.
TBI’s work in advising Saudi Arabia’s leader Mohammed bin Salman in particular has attracted criticism because of the crown prince’s alleged role in the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. Prince Mohammed has denied any involvement.
In an interview with the Financial Times in 2023, Blair insisted the desert kingdom was embarking on “enormous” social and economic reforms and insisted that TBI did turn down some foreign business.
“We have said no and we’ve pulled out of places,” he said. “I won’t say where, but we have left places when we decided they weren’t going in the right direction.”
While Blair does not take a salary from the institute, TBI’s other four directors were paid a total of $2.02mn last year, up from $1.1mn in the previous 12 months.
The highest-paid director took home $1.26mn, almost double what they received in 2022. The director is not named in the accounts.
TBI said the institute “took the decision to invest in expansion and run a small deficit, given our strong reserves and cash position”.
“As a not-for-profit, there will be years where our investment exceeds our income, especially when we have produced strong surpluses in recent years,” it added.
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