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The British administration is being called upon to "step up" and cover the £24.5m expense incurred during the recent visits by Donald Trump and JD Vance to Scotland, according to a senior Holyrood official.

Significant Provisional Costs Revealed

Preliminary costs amounting to almost £24.5m for the pair of working visits have been published by the administration in Edinburgh.

Public Finance Minister McKee described the UK government's unwillingness to provide funding as "ridiculous," arguing that both trips were clearly work-related, pointing out that the US president held meetings with European Union chief the EU's von der Leyen and British PM Keir Starmer during his July stay in the northern nation.

Details of the Visits and Associated Security Expenses

The former president visited his golf courses at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire over a five-day period in the summer, while US vice-president Vance spent around a long weekend in the Ayrshire region in late summer.

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

The Scottish government estimates that the estimated expense for policing the presidential visit alone was £21 million, which reflected maximum daily assignments of more than four thousand police, while expenses for the VP's visit were about £3 million.

Large-Scale Policing Operation

This extensive security mission was the largest in Scotland since the passing of the late Queen in 2022, and involved regional police, national divisions, volunteer officers and wider UK colleagues for specialist support.

Robison stated: "After your choice not to offer financial support to the Scottish government for expenses accrued in relation to the visit of Donald Trump to the nation in July 2025 and the subsequent visit of VP Vance, I am writing you to ask that you review this stance and provide complete repayment for the cost of the visits."

UK Government Reply and Previous Example

The UK government stated that the trips were private and "not official UK government business." A representative added: "The Scottish government must cover security expenses in Scotland as per agreed funding agreements for devolved matters."

While the Finance Secretary pointed to past instances where the British administration covered the cost of Trump’s 2018 visit to Scotland, it is understood that trip came after a formal invitation from Westminster, in which instance it included protection expenses under its statement of funding policy.

"Westminster needs to step up and cover the cost. I think it’s ridiculous, it was clearly a work visit … Particularly when you have the prime minister Sir Keir spending time with the president, having press conferences with them, conducting global diplomacy with them, its really stretching the bounds of credibility to say this was just a personal vacation."