🔗 Share this article

The British administration is being urged to "take responsibility" and reimburse the £24.5m cost incurred during the recent trips by former President Trump and Vice-President Vance to Scotland, according to a senior Holyrood official.

Significant Estimated Expenses Disclosed

Provisional expenses totalling nearly £24.5m for the pair of working visits have been published by the Scottish government.

Ivan McKee labeled the UK government's refusal to provide funding as "absurd," stating that both visits were clearly work-related, noting that the American leader held meetings with European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen and UK prime minister Keir Starmer during his summer visit in Scotland.

Particulars of the Trips and Associated Security Expenses

The former president toured his golfing resorts at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie over a week-long trip in July, while US vice-president Vance spent approximately four days in Ayrshire in late summer.

In a formal letter to the Treasury minister James Murray, Finance Secretary Shona Robison stated that the visits placed "significant strains and costs on public services in Scotland, particularly the Scottish police force."

The Edinburgh administration calculates that the provisional cost for policing the presidential visit alone was £21 million, which reflected maximum daily assignments of more than 4,000 officers, while expenses for the VP's visit were about £3m.

Complex Security Mission

This complex security mission was the largest in Scotland since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and involved local officers, specialist units, volunteer officers and wider UK colleagues for expert assistance.

Robison stated: "After your decision not to offer financial support to the Scottish government for expenses incurred in relation to the trip of President Donald Trump to Scotland in summer 2025 and the subsequent visit of VP Vance, I am writing you to ask that you review this decision and provide complete repayment for the expense of the visits."

Westminster Reply and Previous Example

The UK government stated that the visits were personal and "not part of official government duties." A representative added: "The Scottish government are responsible for policing costs in the country as per established devolved funding arrangements."

While the Finance Secretary referenced past instances where the UK government reimbursed the cost of the president's 2018 trip to the nation, it is understood that trip followed a formal UK government invitation, in which case it covered protection expenses under its statement of funding policy.

"The UK government needs to step up and pay. I think it’s ridiculous, it was clearly a work visit … Especially when you have the PM Keir Starmer meeting with the president, holding joint briefings with them, conducting global diplomacy with him, its really stretching the bounds of credibility to say this was just a private holiday trip."