SCOTTISH ministers have demanded that the British government pick up the £26 million bill for Donald Trump and JD Vance’s private visits to the country over the summer.

The US president spent four days on his Ayrshire and Aberdeenshire golf courses in July, with his vice-president in Scotland a month later.

More than 4,000 Police Scotland officers were deployed during the visits, running up an overtime bill of around £26m.

Had those visits been at the invitation of the British government, it would have been expected to pick up the tab, but as they were private, the Treasury says it is not liable for the costs.

Nonetheless, SNP Finance Secretary Shona Robison argued that the visits were “diplomatically significant” and has written to Chief Secretary to the Treasury James Murray demanding a rethink.

“It is important to note that these visits were not initiated by the Scottish government, nor were they part of devolved policy initiatives,” she told Mr Murray.

“Whilst I recognise this was not an official visit initiated by the UK government, any visit by a sitting president and vice-president will always constitute a high-profile event.”

Scottish Greens co-leader Gillian Mackay said: “Scotland did not ask for these visits or the upheaval they brought and we should not pay a penny towards them.

“If there is any question as to who should pay, it should be between the White House and Downing Street.

“It was Keir Starmer who personally rolled out the red carpet and shuttled himself straight to Trump’s side when he arrived.

“He can’t appease men like Trump and Vance while expecting it to be funded by the Scottish taxpayer.”

A spokesperson for the UK government said: “The Scottish government are responsible for policing costs in Scotland as per agreed devolved funding arrangements.”