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The UK government is being urged to "step up" and reimburse the £24.5 million cost incurred during recent trips by former President Trump and Vice-President Vance to Scotland, according to a top Holyrood official.

Substantial Provisional Costs Disclosed

Preliminary costs totalling almost £24.5m for the two official trips have been made public by the Scottish government.

Public Finance Minister McKee described the Westminster's refusal to provide funding as "absurd," arguing that both trips were obviously official, noting that the American leader held discussions with EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer during his July stay in the northern nation.

Particulars of the Trips and Associated Security Expenses

The former president toured his golfing resorts at Turnberry and Menie in Aberdeenshire over a week-long period in July, while American VP Vance spent around a long weekend in the Ayrshire region in August.

In a written communication to the Treasury’s chief secretary James Murray, Finance Secretary Shona Robison wrote that the trips placed "substantial operational and financial burdens on Scottish public services, especially the Scottish police force."

The Scottish government estimates that the estimated expense for policing the presidential visit by itself was £21 million, which involved peak daily deployments of more than 4,000 officers, while costs for the VP's visit were about £3 million.

Large-Scale Security Mission

This complex security mission was the largest in the country since the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and involved local officers, specialist units, special constables and officers from across the UK for expert assistance.

The Finance Secretary stated: "After your choice not to offer financial support to Scotland for costs accrued in connection with the trip of President Donald Trump to the nation in July 2025 and the subsequent trip of Vice-President Vance, I am writing you to ask that you reconsider this stance and offer complete repayment for the expense of the trips."

UK Government Reply and Previous Example

The UK government stated that the visits were personal and "not official UK government business." A spokesperson added: "Holyrood must cover policing costs in Scotland as per agreed funding agreements for devolved matters."

While Robison pointed to past instances where the UK government reimbursed the expense of Trump’s 2018 visit to Scotland, it is understood that visit followed a official invitation from Westminster, in which case it included protection expenses under its statement of funding policy.

"The UK government must take action and pay. I think it’s ridiculous, it was clearly a official trip … Particularly when you have the prime minister Sir Keir meeting with Donald Trump, holding joint briefings with them, conducting international business with him, its really stretching the bounds of credibility to say this was merely a personal vacation."