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The British administration is being called upon to "take responsibility" and cover the £24.5 million cost incurred during recent visits by former President Trump and Vice-President Vance to Scotland, according to a top Scottish minister.

Significant Estimated Expenses Disclosed

Provisional costs totalling almost £24.5m for the two working visits have been made public by the Scottish government.

Public Finance Minister McKee labeled the Westminster's unwillingness to offer financial support as "absurd," arguing that both visits were clearly official, noting that the American leader held discussions with European Union chief the EU's von der Leyen and British PM Keir Starmer during his July stay in Scotland.

Details of the Trips and Associated Security Expenses

Donald Trump toured his golfing resorts at Turnberry and Menie over a week-long period in the summer, while US vice-president JD Vance spent around four days in the Ayrshire region in late summer.

In a formal letter to the Treasury minister Chief Secretary Murray, Finance Secretary Shona Robison wrote that the trips placed "substantial operational and financial burdens on public services in Scotland, particularly Police Scotland."

The Scottish government estimates that the provisional cost for policing the president's trip alone was £21 million, which involved peak daily deployments of over four thousand police, while costs for the vice-president’s trip were about £3m.

Large-Scale Security Mission

This extensive security mission was the largest in the country since the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and involved regional police, national divisions, volunteer officers and officers from across the UK for specialist support.

Robison wrote: "After your choice not to provide funding to Scotland for expenses accrued in relation to the visit of President Donald Trump to the nation in summer 2025 and the following trip of Vice-President JD Vance, I am contacting you to ask that you reconsider this decision and provide complete repayment for the cost of the trips."

UK Government Response and Previous Example

The UK government maintained that the visits were private and "not part of official government duties." A spokesperson commented: "Holyrood are responsible for security expenses in the country as per agreed funding agreements for devolved matters."

While the Finance Secretary referenced previous precedent where the UK government covered the cost of the president's 2018 trip to the nation, it is believed that trip followed a formal UK government invitation, in which case it included security costs under its statement of funding policy.

"The UK government needs to step up and pay. I think it’s ridiculous, it was obviously a official trip … Especially when you have the prime minister Keir Starmer spending time with the president, holding joint briefings with them, conducting international business with them, its really hard to believe to say this was just a private holiday trip."