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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 trips by Donald Trump and JD Vance to the Scottish nation, according to a senior Holyrood official.

Significant Provisional Costs Disclosed

Provisional costs totalling almost £24.5m for the pair of official trips have been published by the Scottish government.

Ivan McKee labeled the Westminster's unwillingness to provide funding as "absurd," arguing that both visits were clearly work-related, noting that the American leader held meetings with European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen and British PM Sir Keir Starmer during his July stay in the northern nation.

Particulars of the Visits and Associated Policing Costs

Donald Trump visited his golfing resorts at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire over a week-long trip in July, while US vice-president Vance spent approximately a long weekend in the Ayrshire region in late summer.

In a formal letter to the Treasury’s chief secretary James Murray, Finance Secretary Shona Robison wrote that the trips placed "significant strains and costs on public services in Scotland, especially Police Scotland."

The Scottish government estimates that the estimated expense for policing the presidential visit by itself was £21 million, which involved peak daily deployments of over four thousand police, while costs for the vice-president’s trip were about £3 million.

Complex Policing Operation

This complex policing operation was the largest in Scotland since the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and involved local officers, specialist units, volunteer officers and officers from across the UK for expert assistance.

Robison stated: "Following your choice not to offer financial support to Scotland for expenses accrued in relation to the visit of President Donald Trump to Scotland in July 2025 and the following trip of Vice-President Vance, I am contacting you to ask that you review this stance and offer full reimbursement for the cost of the visits."

Westminster Response and Previous Example

The UK government stated that the trips were private and "not part of official government duties." A spokesperson commented: "Holyrood must cover security expenses in Scotland as per established funding agreements for devolved matters."

While Robison referenced past instances where the British administration covered the cost of Trump’s 2018 visit to the nation, it is believed that trip followed a official UK government invitation, in which case it included protection expenses under its funding guidelines.

"The UK government must take action and cover the cost. I think it’s ridiculous, it was obviously a work visit … Especially when you have the PM Keir Starmer spending time with the president, holding joint briefings with him, conducting international business with them, its really stretching the bounds of credibility to say this was just a private holiday trip."