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The British administration is being urged to "take responsibility" and reimburse the £24.5m expense incurred during the recent trips by former President Trump and Vice-President Vance to the Scottish nation, according to a top Holyrood official.

Significant Estimated Expenses Disclosed

Preliminary costs amounting to nearly £24.5m for the pair of working visits have been published by the Scottish government.

Ivan McKee labeled the UK government's refusal to provide funding as "ridiculous," stating that both trips were clearly official, pointing out that the American leader held discussions with European Union chief the EU's von der Leyen and UK prime minister Keir Starmer during his July stay in the northern nation.

Particulars of the Trips and Associated Security Expenses

Donald Trump toured his golf courses 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 formal letter to the Treasury minister James Murray, Scotland’s finance secretary stated that the trips placed "substantial operational and financial burdens on public services in Scotland, particularly the Scottish police force."

The Edinburgh administration calculates that the provisional cost for securing the president's trip alone was £21 million, which reflected maximum daily assignments of more than four thousand police, while costs for the VP's visit were about £3m.

Complex Security Mission

This complex policing operation was the largest in Scotland since the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and included local officers, specialist units, special constables 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 connection with the trip of President Donald Trump to Scotland in summer 2025 and the subsequent trip of VP Vance, I am writing you to request that you reconsider this decision and provide full reimbursement for the cost of the trips."

UK Government Response and Previous Example

The UK government maintained that the trips were personal and "not part of official government duties." A representative commented: "Holyrood must cover security expenses in Scotland as per established devolved funding arrangements."

While the Finance Secretary pointed to past instances where the UK government reimbursed the cost of Trump’s 2018 visit to Scotland, it is understood that trip followed a formal invitation from Westminster, in which case it included protection expenses under its funding guidelines.

"The UK government needs to step up and pay. I think it’s unreasonable, it was clearly a work visit … Especially when you have the PM Sir Keir meeting with the president, holding joint briefings with him, engaging in international business with him, its really stretching the bounds of credibility to say this was just a personal vacation."