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

Significant Estimated Expenses Revealed

Provisional costs amounting to nearly £24.5m for the pair of official trips have been published by the administration in Edinburgh.

Ivan McKee described the UK government's refusal to provide funding as "absurd," stating that both trips were clearly work-related, pointing out that the American leader held meetings with European Union chief the EU's von der Leyen and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer during his summer visit in Scotland.

Particulars of the Trips and Related Security Expenses

The former president toured his golfing resorts at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire over a five-day trip in the summer, while American VP Vance spent around four days in Ayrshire in August.

In a formal letter to the Treasury’s chief secretary Chief Secretary Murray, Scotland’s finance secretary wrote that the trips placed "substantial operational and financial burdens on public services in Scotland, particularly the Scottish police force."

The Edinburgh administration estimates that the estimated expense for securing the president's trip alone was £21m, which reflected maximum daily assignments of more than 4,000 officers, while expenses for the VP's visit were about £3 million.

Complex Security Mission

This complex policing operation was the largest in Scotland since the death of the late Queen in 2022, and included local officers, national divisions, volunteer officers and officers from across the UK for specialist support.

The Finance Secretary wrote: "Following your decision not to offer financial support to Scotland for expenses incurred in connection with the visit of President Donald Trump to Scotland in July 2025 and the following visit of Vice-President JD Vance, I am writing you to request that you reconsider this stance and provide complete repayment for the expense of the trips."

UK Government Reply and Previous Example

The British administration stated that the trips were private and "not official UK government business." A spokesperson added: "The Scottish government must cover security expenses in the country as per established funding agreements for devolved matters."

While the Finance Secretary referenced previous precedent where the UK government reimbursed the expense of Trump’s 2018 visit to Scotland, it is believed that trip followed a formal UK government invitation, in which instance it included protection expenses under its funding guidelines.

"The UK government must take action and cover the cost. I think it’s ridiculous, it was obviously a official trip … Especially when you have the PM Keir Starmer spending time with the president, having press conferences with him, engaging in international business with him, its really hard to believe to say this was just a private holiday trip."