County council chiefs say a transatlantic collaboration with Virginia in America and their decision to spend £225,000 sponsoring a large folk festival has boosted jobs and tourism.

Kent County Council's links with the US state have to date cost about £315,000 of taxpayers' money and have drawn criticism from some.

The authority invested £225,000 sponsoring a large folk festival across the Atlantic, and a bid to launch the UK's first direct flights from Manston Airport to Virginia flopped last year after poor ticket sales, losing KCC thousands of pounds.

But a new report presented to councillors paints an upbeat picture of the partnership and says there have been significant benefits.

Last summer, a 17-strong delegation of officers and councillors travelled to Washington as part of its sponsorship of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, at a cost of more than £35,000.

The report claims KCC's involvement as a festival sponsor secured media coverage equivalent to £728,000 of advertising.

It also predicted 26,000 more tourists would visit Kent, spending some £80million, on the back of KCC's presence - based on returns Scotland estimated it got when it sponsored the same festival.

Trade links that have sprung up as a result of the partnership had seen Kent and Essex benefit to the tune of £22,000 of new business.

Cllr Alex King, Conservative deputy leader of the county council, said KCC was aware it was taking risks but said: "I do not believe that the entrepreneurial spirit is in the private sector alone.

"Nobody else has done it and there was no evidence of how it might be done. This [partnership with Virginia] was innovation in the true sense."

He added: "Sometimes you are taking risks and it takes time to move public perceptions on. This report demonstrates that we are beginning to show success."