Taxpayers in Dover will also be winners should the Olympic torch come to the town in 2012.

Kent County Council has revealed no additional costs to do with road closures or policing will be met by the town’s taxpayers’ money.

All costs will be funded by London 2012, according to information given to the Mercury following a freedom of information request.

It was also confirmed that the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) and Paralympic Games could make its decision on the route of the Olympic torch as late as 2011 and that the decision will be made by London 2012.

Kent County Council’s head of Sport, Leisure and Olympics, Chris Hespe, said: “So far informal consideration has been given to safety and security implications which will be addressed further by the Kent Resilience Forum.

“The arrival of the torch at Dover and its subsequent journey through Kent is a priority of the Kent 2012 Campaign, which is led and managed by Kent County Council.”

Kent Police is represented on the campaign’s coordinating group.