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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 Donald Trump and JD Vance to Scotland, according to a top Holyrood official.

Significant Estimated Expenses Revealed

Preliminary expenses totalling nearly £24.5m for the two working visits have been published by the Scottish government.

Public Finance Minister McKee labeled the UK government's unwillingness to provide funding as "ridiculous," stating that both visits were clearly official, pointing out that the American leader held discussions with EU Commission president the EU's von der Leyen and UK prime minister Keir Starmer during his summer visit in the northern nation.

Details of the Trips and Related Security Expenses

The former president 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 four days in the Ayrshire region in August.

In a formal letter to the Treasury minister Chief Secretary Murray, Scotland’s finance secretary stated that the trips placed "significant operational and financial burdens on public services in Scotland, especially the Scottish police force."

The Scottish government calculates that the provisional cost for policing the presidential visit by itself was £21m, which involved maximum daily assignments of more than 4,000 officers, while expenses for the VP's visit were about £3 million.

Complex Security Mission

This complex security mission was the biggest in Scotland since the death of the late Queen in 2022, and included local officers, national divisions, special constables and officers from across the UK for specialist support.

The Finance Secretary wrote: "After your choice not to offer financial support to the Scottish government for costs accrued in relation to the trip of President Donald Trump to the nation in summer 2025 and the subsequent visit of Vice-President JD Vance, I am writing you to request that you review this decision and provide complete repayment for the cost of the trips."

UK Government Response and Past Precedent

The British administration stated that the trips were private and "not part of official government duties." A spokesperson commented: "The Scottish government must cover policing costs in Scotland as per agreed devolved funding arrangements."

While the Finance Secretary referenced past instances where the British administration covered the cost of the president's 2018 trip to Scotland, it is believed that trip came after 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 unreasonable, it was clearly a official trip … Particularly when you have the prime minister Keir Starmer meeting with Donald Trump, holding joint briefings with him, conducting global diplomacy with him, its really hard to believe to say this was merely a private holiday trip."