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The British administration is being urged to "take responsibility" and cover the £24.5m expense incurred during the recent visits by former President Trump and Vice-President Vance to Scotland, according to a senior Scottish minister.

Substantial Estimated Expenses Disclosed

Preliminary expenses totalling almost £24.5m for the two official trips have been published by the administration in Edinburgh.

Public Finance Minister McKee described the Westminster's unwillingness to provide funding as "ridiculous," arguing that both visits were obviously official, noting that the US president held discussions with EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and UK prime minister Keir Starmer during his summer stay in Scotland.

Details of the Visits and Related Security Expenses

Donald Trump visited his golfing resorts at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie over a five-day trip in the summer, while US vice-president JD Vance spent around four days in the Ayrshire region in late summer.

In a written communication to the Treasury minister Chief Secretary Murray, Scotland’s finance secretary wrote that the trips placed "substantial operational and financial burdens on public services in Scotland, particularly Police Scotland."

The Scottish government calculates that the estimated expense for securing the presidential visit by itself was £21 million, which reflected peak daily deployments of over 4,000 officers, while expenses for the vice-president’s trip were about £3 million.

Complex Security Mission

This complex policing operation was the biggest in Scotland since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and involved local officers, national divisions, special constables and officers from across the UK for specialist support.

Robison wrote: "After your decision not to provide funding to Scotland for costs incurred in relation to the visit of President Donald Trump to the nation in summer 2025 and the following trip of VP Vance, I am contacting you to ask that you review this decision and provide full reimbursement for the expense of the trips."

UK Government Response and Previous Example

The UK government stated that the trips were private and "not official UK government business." A spokesperson added: "The Scottish government are responsible for policing costs in the country as per agreed funding agreements for devolved matters."

While the Finance Secretary referenced previous precedent where the British administration reimbursed the cost of Trump’s 2018 visit to Scotland, it is believed that trip followed a official invitation from Westminster, in which instance it covered security costs under its funding guidelines.

"The UK government needs to step up and pay. I think it’s ridiculous, it was obviously a work visit … Particularly when you have the PM Sir Keir spending time with Donald Trump, having press conferences with them, engaging in global diplomacy with them, its really stretching the bounds of credibility to say this was just a private holiday trip."