TEST Valley Borough Council (TVBC) splashed out £3,000 of taxpayer’s money on attending a London-based award ceremony - in which they came home empty-handed.

The authority spent £2,500 on 10 tickets to this year’s MJ Local Government Achievement Awards, which took place at the five-star London Hilton Hotel in June.

The authority was invited to the awards, which celebrate the work of councils across the country, after being selected as a finalist in the the Local Authority of the Year category.

However it turned out to be an unsuccessful night for TVBC, who lost out to eventual winners City of Wolverhampton Council.

As well as forking out on the costs of the tickets, the council also footed a £640 travel bill for the authority’s attendees on the night.

These included leader councillor Phil North and the authority’s £117,000-a-year chief executive Roger Tetstall.

One person to criticise the cost of the tickets and travel was Chloe Westley, campaign manager at the pressure group TaxPayers’ Alliance.

She said: “Instead of congratulating themselves with a £3,000 night out on the taxpayer, perhaps council staff should focus on providing reliable and quality services to the residents that are paying their salaries.”

Despite the criticism, councillor North described the council’s place in the final as a “magnificent achievement”.

Defending the cost, he said: “We are extremely proud to have been the only borough council in the country to have reached the final of the MJ Awards for Local Authority of the Year.

"This fantastic achievement, which was reported in the Andover Advertiser in June, is testament to the hard work of all our staff and councillors.

"As finalists, we were naturally invited to attend the award ceremony where the winners were announced.

"This included staff who had made significant contributions to the work outlined in the award submission.”