Peter Foster - Cherie Blair Controversy

Cherie Blair Controversy

Foster's involvement in the 2002 controversy involving Cherie Blair (sometimes known as "Cheriegate") became known when it was revealed that he was the financial advisor to Blair and assisted her with the purchase of two flats in Bristol. Cherie Blair tried to distance herself from Foster and released a public statement claiming that Foster was not involved with the property deal. The Daily Mail newspaper provided email evidence to the contrary; in one email between Blair and Foster she described him as "a star" and said, "We are on the same wave length, Peter."

Blair went public herself, tearfully reading a prepared statement blaming her "misfortune" on the pressures of running a family and being a mother. Cherie and Tony Blair at one time agreed to be godparents to the yet-to-be born child of Foster and his partner Carole Caplin, who later miscarried. Foster also celebrated Christmas with the Blair family and was a guest at 10 Downing Street on the night of his 40th birthday. Foster later claimed, on his 2004 ABC TV Enough Rope appearance, that he believed his partner was pregnant with Tony Blair's child, the product of a long-standing extramarital affair. However, The Times investigated the claims and found them "a catalogue of errors and inconsistencies" and an "elaborate hoax". Carole Caplin said about Foster's claims: "This is just a new way for Peter to get attention. He is just a fantasist and these absurd stories shouldn't be given any credibility."

Foster claimed he had been accused in the media of being an agent for Israeli intelligence service Mossad. He denied being one in a press statement made during the Cheriegate scandal. He also claimed "No one has ever lost money through my enterprises" and asked "Could it be I had to be discredited by the establishment?" The claim about lost money is disputed by Malcolm Brown who wrote that thousands have lost money.