Prime Minister Tony Blair more than doubled his annual spending on overseas travel to more than £2 million in the year to April.

His visits, in the run-up to the UK presidencies of the G8, the EU and as part of London's 2012 Olympic bid, accounted for a third of the cost of all ministerial travel.

Mr Blair made 22 overseas visits between March 2005 and April 2006 - compared to 21 in the previous 12 months which cost only £809,152.

T his year's bill was £2,023,909 - with two journeys alone each costing nearly £500,000. The figure includes both travel and accommodation. The figure for all ministerial travel was £6.1 million.

Downing Street has already announced plans to lease two second-hand aircraft to use on official travel, replacing the existing mix of RAF Royal Flight and privately chartered planes.

Officials have complained of the increasingly expensive private chartered market.

The Prime Minister's single most expensive visit at £482,880 was last July to Riyadh for private talks with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia and then on to Singapore for the historic decision to grant London the 2012 Olympics.

The next most expensive trip was to Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia in March - at £437,921.

Mr Blair and his wife Cherie visited the Melbourne Commonwealth Games before going on to talks in Canberra, Auckland and Jakarta.

On EU business, Mr Blair's EU China and India summits which also included bilateral talks - cost £189,000 and the UN Millennium Summit in New York set the taxpayer back £139,000.

Last Christmas a visit to British troops in Basra, via Kuwait, cost £129,949.

Mr Blair used the Royal Flight of 32 Squadron on only seven occasions.

The Gershon review of ministerial travel said earlier this year that it was becoming increasingly unreliable for Government business - not its top priority.

Liberal Democrat MP Norman Baker said: "It is clear that the Prime Minister is spending more time abroad in direct proportion to his popularity dipping at home.

"The massive increase in money he has spent this year on flights suggests that there is no cheque he will not sign providing it's a blank one on the taxpayers' bank account."

A Defra spokesman said: "The use of RAF aircraft is governed by time and cost considerations, as well as the Ministerial code of conduct.

"A full RAF flight costs the department less per person than if the ministerial team flew by commercial airline.

"Furthermore there are occasions when meetings end at unpredictable hours, sometimes in the middle of the night, when there is no alternative transport available.

"Returning to the UK allows attendance at high level meetings early next morning and represents savings on hotel accommodation and subsistence for the ministerial party."