More than £45,000 of public funds was spent on business-class flights to take First Minister John Swinney and two senior aides to the World Cup in the United States, government figures have revealed.

The Scottish Government spent a total of £98,442 on US trips for ministers and officials, covering flights, hotels, car hire, and expenses. Releasing the travel costs, the government stated that the visits were arranged to support the Scotland men's team at their first World Cup appearance in nearly three decades, alongside conducting ministerial discussions on trade, tourism, culture, and investment.

Mr Swinney flew to Boston on 11 June for Scotland's opening fixture before travelling to Kentucky three days later for trade talks. Flights for the First Minister and his private secretary, John Webster, cost £17,893 each, while business-class tickets for his special adviser, Colin McAllister, reached £9,864. A further £11,800 was spent on economy flights for several accompanying officials, with more than £10,000 incurred for car hire during Mr Swinney's visit.

The spending has raised questions over Scottish Government travel rules, which state that business-class flights should only be used on journeys of more than 10 hours "unless otherwise agreed". Direct flights between Edinburgh and Boston typically last around seven hours.

By contrast, Sports Minister Maree Todd travelled on significantly cheaper economy-class flights for her three-day visit to Miami to watch Scotland's final game. The cost of plane tickets for Ms Todd and four accompanying officials came to £5,485.

Mr Swinney has defended the expenditure, insisting the government sought to "minimise" costs where possible. He told BBC Scotland News: "Obviously, when flights have got to be booked, when there's intense pressure on the time involved, then the costs are likely to be higher."

Cabinet colleagues have also stepped in to defend the travel arrangements. Justice Secretary Neil Gray told BBC Radio Scotland Breakfast that business class was a "proportionate use" to ensure ministers "arrive fresh" and ready to work immediately, adding that the visit helped boost Scotland's "soft-power reach and the ability to make significant international connections."

Speaking at the BBC's Scotcast live show at the Edinburgh Festival, Economy Secretary Stephen Flynn also defended the First Minister. He remarked: "If we want our politicians to go and sit in row 46 beside the toilets and then land in Boston and then go and engage with US government officials having done so we'll get exactly what we deserve as politicians."

Opposition politicians have strongly condemned the expenditure. Conservative MSP Stephen Kerr argued that while nobody begrudged ministers supporting the team, "in typical SNP fashion costs were never kept under control," adding that ministers should have met the significant expenses out of their own pockets.

With ministerial travel and expenses continuing to attract public scrutiny, the debate over whether taxpayers should fund premium travel for overseas government work remains unresolved. I'll be following this one.