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Lord Laidlaw

Laidlaw, 64, has lent £3m to the Tories and given £2m to fund the Excelsior city academy in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. But he recently had to write to the Lords Appointments Commission explaining why he had not met a requirement to give up his tax exile status in Monaco. His big break came with the 1982 purchase of a small publisher, which became a leading conference organiser. In 2005 Laidlaw sold the business for £768m, picking up £714m. He pledged to help good causes so we keep him at £730m, with assets that include a yacht, a private jet and art.