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It rather begs the question: who would want to?

But people who attend speaking lectures by Tony Blair are being charged an extra £180 for the privilege of having their photo taken with him.

At a recent event in Canada, 100 'premium' tickets include a 'photo opportunity with Tony Blair' and the best seats.

The tickets for the Surrey Regional Economic Summit in British Columbia on October 6, which has already sold out, cost about £420.

There are 500 tickets which cost £180 less but, buyers are warned, a 'photo opportunity is not included'.

'It’s a unique souvenir,' said Norman Stowe, one of the event's organisers.

Stowe said: 'We only have 100 of the top-price option, with a photo opportunity with Mr Blair.

'The people who are doing this are quite keen and obviously follow his career.

'There is a process where you can put a lot of people through in a very short amount of time for the photographs.

'It doesn’t take more than three or four seconds per person.'

Blair is attending the event for about two hours and will speak for 30 minutes.

His fee has not been disclosed, but many institutions in the U.S are prepared to fork out more than £150,000 for a speech of around an hour and a half.

Appearances on the lecture circuit have made Blair the world's best paid public speaker, earning an estimated £15million since he left office two years ago.

As a senior adviser to Wall Street bank JP Morgan Chase, Mr Blair is believed to earn up to £2 million a year.

His salary from Zurich Financial Services to work as an adviser on international politics and climate change is put at £500,000.

As a former prime minister, he is entitled to a pension of £63,468 a year, as well as £84,000 to fund a private office.

His spokesman said: 'Whilst Mr Blair remains one of the most popular international speakers there is, the vast majority of his time is taken up by his unpaid activities in the Middle East, advocating on issues such as climate change and Africa, and with the work of his faith and sports foundations.'

Source; www.dailymail.co.uk