The taxpayer shelled out nearly $1.5 million for this year?s Bermuda Music Festival but ticket sales netted only $800,000, the Premier has revealed.

In answers to parliamentary questions raised by Opposition Tourism spokesman David Dodwell, Premier Ewart Brown revealed the Tourism Helps Everyone Foundation, set up by his wife, chipped in $110,000 to help reduce the cost.

Yesterday Mr. Dodwell said the Bermuda Music Festival was the Island?s biggest event and the largest item in the Tourism budget and it was right to question whether the taxpayer was getting value for money.

The break down reveals that of the 10,858 tickets sold there was a roughly 50 percent split between visitors and locals.

Mr. Dodwell questioned whether the proportions of tourists was that high.

He said: ?I support the event but we need to get more visitors to come out for it.

?Look at the St. Lucia, that?s the biggest one, they have done a phenomenal job.?

He said it needed to be promoted better as the quality of artists was good enough.

The statistics show the total cost to the Bermuda Government for the 2006 Bermuda Music Festival was $1,497,129 while ticket revenue was $800,292.

Mr. Dodwell said he had asked for a total breakdown of the Bermuda Government costs to find out how much had been spent on artistes, equipment, travel and accommodation, food/beverage, entertainment, transport, marketing and communications.

Instead everything had been lumped in with the $1,497,129 figure.