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The UK government is being called upon to "step up" and cover the £24.5 million expense incurred during the recent trips by former President Trump and JD Vance to the Scottish nation, according to a senior Scottish minister.

Substantial Provisional Costs Disclosed

Preliminary costs amounting to almost £24.5m for the pair of official trips have been made public by the administration in Edinburgh.

Public Finance Minister McKee labeled the Westminster's unwillingness to provide funding as "ridiculous," 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 summer visit in the northern nation.

Particulars of the Visits and Related Security Expenses

The former president toured his golf courses at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie over a five-day trip in July, while US vice-president Vance spent approximately four days in Ayrshire in August.

In a formal letter to the Treasury’s chief secretary James Murray, Scotland’s finance secretary stated that the visits placed "significant strains and costs on Scottish public services, particularly Police Scotland."

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

Large-Scale Security Mission

This extensive security mission was the biggest in the country since the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and included local officers, national divisions, special constables and wider UK colleagues for specialist support.

Robison stated: "Following your choice not to offer financial support to the Scottish government for expenses incurred in relation to the trip of President Donald Trump to the nation in summer 2025 and the subsequent visit of VP Vance, I am contacting you to request that you reconsider this stance and provide complete repayment for the cost of the visits."

Westminster Reply and Previous Example

The British administration stated that the visits were private and "not part of official government duties." A spokesperson added: "Holyrood must cover policing costs in Scotland as per established funding agreements for devolved matters."

While Robison pointed to previous precedent where the British administration covered the expense of the president's 2018 trip 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 needs to step up and cover the cost. I think it’s ridiculous, it was clearly a work visit … Especially when you have the PM Keir Starmer spending time with the president, having press conferences with them, engaging in global diplomacy with him, its really stretching the bounds of credibility to say this was just a personal vacation."