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

Significant Provisional Costs Disclosed

Preliminary expenses totalling almost £24.5m for the pair of official trips have been made public by the Scottish government.

Public Finance Minister McKee described the UK government's refusal to provide funding as "absurd," arguing that both visits were clearly official, pointing out that the US president held meetings with European Union chief the EU's von der Leyen and British PM Keir Starmer during his July stay in Scotland.

Particulars of the Visits and Associated Policing Costs

Donald Trump toured his golfing resorts at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire over a week-long trip in the summer, while American VP Vance spent around a long weekend in Ayrshire in August.

In a written communication to the Treasury’s chief secretary Chief Secretary Murray, Scotland’s finance secretary stated that the trips placed "significant strains and costs on public services in Scotland, especially Police Scotland."

The Scottish government calculates that the estimated expense for policing the presidential visit alone was £21m, which involved peak daily deployments of over 4,000 officers, while expenses for the vice-president’s trip were approximately £3m.

Large-Scale Policing Operation

This complex security mission was the largest in Scotland since the death of the late Queen in 2022, and involved local officers, national divisions, volunteer officers and wider UK colleagues for specialist support.

Robison stated: "Following your choice not to offer financial support to the Scottish government for costs accrued in connection with the visit of President Donald Trump to Scotland in summer 2025 and the subsequent trip of VP JD Vance, I am writing you to request that you reconsider this stance and provide complete repayment for the cost of the visits."

Westminster Response and Past Precedent

The British administration maintained that the visits were private and "not official UK government business." A spokesperson added: "Holyrood must cover policing costs in the country as per agreed funding agreements for devolved matters."

While Robison pointed to past instances where the British administration covered the cost of the president's 2018 trip to the nation, it is believed that visit came after a official UK government invitation, in which case it included security costs under its funding guidelines.

"Westminster needs to step up and cover the cost. I think it’s ridiculous, it was clearly a official trip … Especially when you have the prime minister Sir Keir 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."