by political editor Paul Francis

A Kent council has defended its decision to send a delegation of officials to the British Golf Open at St Andrews in Scotland, saying it helped its preparations to stage next year's event at Sandwich.

Dover District Council sent a four-strong delegation to St Andrews, with one tourism official staying for nine days to take accommodation bookings.

During the visit, council officials held meetings with Kent Police representatives who were also present at the event to prepare for next year.

In a statement, the council said the visit enabled it to "maximise the tremendous opportunities presented by the Open to promote the area to a worldwide audience and bring in major economic benefits."

The statement added that the council was determined to ensure that its success in staging the 2003 event was repeated.

However, the decision is likely to prompt questions about the value of the visit and whether it was necessary, as both Canterbury City Council and Kent County Council also sent fact-finding delegations to the competition.

The council said: "The 2003 Open in Sandwich was watched by millions of people across the world and we are working hard with our partners to build on this success when the Open returns in 2011, to ensure this prestigious event continues to return and brings a range of major benefits to the area for years to come."

The Dover group consisted of two tourism officers, a project manager and Cllr Nigel Collor, the chairman of the authority's executive group, who were both there for two days.

According to its statement, the council's representatives held meetings with Fife council; the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, Fife Police and Kent Police "to learn best practice as St Andrews has a wealth of experience in hosting the event."

It is not yet known how much it cost to send the group to Scotland.