FIRST Minister Alex Salmond has provoked anger after rejecting calls to explain a £54,000 travel bill as "ridiculous frippery".

Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont accused him of being out of touch with voters after he refused to account for a trip to the Ryder Cup golf tournament. Mr Salmond led a Scottish Government delegation to the event in 2012, when he stayed at the £1200 per night Peninsula Hotel in Chicago.

VisitScotland, the national tourism agency,has accounted for £414,000 of the £468,000 total cost of the visit, of which £13,500 was spent on accommodation.