Paul Roll, chief executive of the Paris tourist board, has been invited to join the judging panel for the annual Visit London tourism awards, to reflect the city’s growing accessibility to overseas visitors.

It is the first time an overseas tourism official has been involved in judging the awards.

“We are pleased to have Paul Roll as a judge of the Visit London awards,” said James Bidwell, Visit London’s chief executive.

“London is now more accessible than ever for European visitors and the capital’s top tourism businesses need to appeal to both UK and overseas markets, so it is very appropriate to have an expert European judge on the panel.”

Paul Roll added: “Paris and London are traditionally seen as competitors, however with travel times of around two and a half hours between the two cities, we should be working closely together to market both destinations to leisure and business travellers.”

Sponsors of the awards include Eurostar and The 02, formerly the Millennium Dome.