A port which has been out of commercial operation for a decade is making a comeback - and it could mean holidays to France for locals.

Thanet District Council (TDC) has begun the process to get Ramsgate docks up and running fully again by searching for an operator and earmarking £9.62 million for its improvement.

It was expected that the port would only be welcoming back freight crossings.

But council bosses have told KentOnline passenger ferries from Ramsgate to the continent are a possibility for the first time since the 1990s - and massive job opportunities are expected.

They say it will be there to "complement" Dover's busy service, which can "only expand so far post-Brexit".

TDC leader Cllr Ash Ashbee hopes to see "everything coming in and out of the port - the more ferries the better".

The Conservative boss said: "We need to diversify the services at the port to make sure its resilient.

"We can’t have all our eggs in one basket.

"I hope that this will open the door for all sorts of trade - not just ferries for the freight but also for passenger ferries and holidays and everything you would see coming into a port of that size."

Cllr Ashbee is "very excited" about the project, and is "very keen to get it going and get things moving".

Deputy leader Reece Pugh insists the port won't see the levels of traffic associated with an operation as big as in Dover.

"I don’t think any of us have ever hopped on a ferry there and had a completely smooth transition coming down the dual carriageway and the motorway," he said.

"The Port of Ramsgate isn’t to rival Dover and I don’t think it will ever be on that scale, but it will complement what's already there.

"Post-Brexit, we want to make sure we have the capacity in our ports for all trade and there’s only so far that Dover can expand - so the port of Ramsgate will be there ready and waiting."

He says the revival of Ramsgate docks will create "lots of job opportunities, both directly and indirectly".

"It provides a level of optimism for the area, which we haven't seen for many years," Cllr Pugh said.

"We want to get on, we want to deliver, we want Thanet to be that attractive place for everyone to come down – not just for an ice cream and to get their chips stolen by seagulls – but to come all year round and invest in the area."

The council expects it to benefit not just Ramsgate, but the whole of east Kent.

Bidding will begin in April with the aim of an operator being in place in September.

The deputy leader explained: "All possibilities are open. We can't narrow down any possible operators yet.

"We are coming into this with an open mind.

"Being situated in the south east on the Kent coast so close to continental Europe it’s an opportunity we really need to run with."

The council will be the freeholder of the site

Cllr Ashbee added: "Anything that we can earn to reinvest back into the port will bring revenue back into the council, so it will benefit the whole district".

The Port of Ramsgate covers an area of 34 acres and has been operated by the council since 1998.

Sally Line operated a passenger service from Ramsgate to Ostend and Dunkirk in the 1980s and 1990s.

There was also a hovercraft service from 1966 to 1982.

However, there has been no commercial ferry operation since 2013 which has contributed to a financial deficit.