Scotland Demands UK Reimburse £24.5m Visit Bill

The Scottish government says the combined policing and security bill for President Donald Trump’s July visit and Vice‑President J.D. Vance’s August visit to Scotland is almost £24.5m (some outlets report around £26m) and has asked the UK Treasury to reimburse the cost in a letter from Finance Secretary Shona Robison to Chief Secretary James Murray. Scotland estimates the presidential visit alone cost about £20–21m and the vice‑president’s trip another £3–6m, and says Police Scotland faced peak daily deployments of more than 4,000 officers. Robison and Scotland’s public finance minister say the visits were diplomatically significant — including meetings with Prime Minister Keir Starmer and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen — point to precedents (including 2018) for central funding, and warn that refusal would strain devolved budgets. The UK Treasury and government maintain both visits were private, not official UK business, and that central funding is only provided when a visit follows a formal invitation, so the Scottish government is responsible for the costs. The dispute remains unresolved, highlighting tensions between devolved Scottish authorities and Westminster over who should meet the unexpectedly large security bill.