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The British administration is being called upon to "take responsibility" and cover the £24.5 million expense incurred during the recent visits by Donald Trump and JD Vance to the Scottish nation, according to a senior Holyrood official.

Significant Provisional Costs Revealed

Preliminary expenses totalling nearly £24.5 million for the two working visits have been published by the administration in Edinburgh.

Public Finance Minister McKee described the Westminster's unwillingness to offer financial support as "absurd," stating that both trips were clearly work-related, pointing out that the American leader held discussions with EU Commission president the EU's von der Leyen and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer during his July stay in the northern nation.

Details of the Trips and Related Security Expenses

Donald Trump toured his golf courses at Turnberry and Menie in Aberdeenshire over a five-day period in July, while US vice-president Vance spent around a long weekend in Ayrshire in August.

In a formal letter to the Treasury minister James Murray, Finance Secretary Shona Robison stated that the trips placed "substantial strains and costs on Scottish public services, especially the Scottish police force."

The Scottish government estimates that the provisional cost for securing the president's trip alone was £21m, which reflected maximum daily assignments of over 4,000 officers, while costs for the vice-president’s trip were about £3m.

Complex Policing Operation

This extensive security mission was the biggest in Scotland since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and involved regional police, specialist units, special constables and officers from across the UK for expert assistance.

The Finance Secretary wrote: "Following your choice not to provide funding to the Scottish government for expenses accrued in connection with the trip of Donald Trump to Scotland in July 2025 and the subsequent trip of Vice-President Vance, I am writing you to request that you reconsider this stance and provide full reimbursement for the expense of the trips."

Westminster Reply and Previous Example

The British administration stated that the visits were personal and "not official UK government business." A spokesperson commented: "Holyrood must cover security expenses in the country as per agreed devolved funding arrangements."

While Robison referenced previous precedent where the British administration reimbursed the expense of the president's 2018 trip to Scotland, it is believed that visit followed a formal UK government invitation, in which instance it included security costs under its funding guidelines.

"Westminster must take action and cover the cost. I think it’s ridiculous, it was obviously a official trip … Especially when you have the prime minister Keir Starmer meeting with the president, having press conferences with him, engaging in global diplomacy with him, its really hard to believe to say this was merely a personal vacation."