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The British administration is being called upon to "take responsibility" and cover the £24.5 million expense incurred during recent trips by former President Trump and JD Vance to the Scottish nation, according to a senior Holyrood official.

Significant Estimated Expenses Disclosed

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

Public Finance Minister McKee described the Westminster's refusal to provide funding as "ridiculous," stating that both visits were clearly official, pointing out that the US president held discussions with EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and British PM Sir Keir Starmer during his July stay in the northern nation.

Particulars of the Trips and Associated Security Expenses

Donald Trump visited his golfing resorts at Turnberry and Menie over a five-day period in July, while US vice-president JD 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 Scottish public services, particularly the Scottish police force."

The Edinburgh administration calculates that the estimated expense for policing the president's trip by itself was £21 million, which involved peak daily deployments of over four thousand police, while expenses for the VP's visit were about £3 million.

Complex Policing Operation

This extensive security mission was the biggest in Scotland since the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and included local officers, specialist units, volunteer officers and wider UK colleagues for specialist support.

The Finance Secretary wrote: "After your choice not to provide funding to the Scottish government for costs accrued in relation to the visit of President Donald Trump to Scotland in summer 2025 and the subsequent visit of Vice-President Vance, I am writing you to request that you review this stance and offer full reimbursement for the cost of the trips."

Westminster Reply and Past Precedent

The UK government maintained that the trips were personal and "not part of official government duties." A representative commented: "Holyrood are responsible for policing costs in Scotland as per established funding agreements for devolved matters."

While the Finance Secretary pointed to previous precedent where the UK government covered the cost of the president's 2018 trip to the nation, it is believed that trip came after a formal UK government invitation, in which case it included security costs under its statement of funding policy.

"Westminster needs to step up and pay. I think it’s ridiculous, it was obviously a work visit … Especially when you have the prime minister Keir Starmer meeting with Donald Trump, having press conferences with him, engaging in international business with them, its really hard to believe to say this was merely a private holiday trip."