7.4 C
London
Friday, March 29, 2024

Six-figure bill for entertaining and hosting Donald Trump during UK visit

Must read

Donald Trump and his wife Melania are welcomed by Theresa May and her husband Philip at Blenheim Palace

Donald Trump’s visit to the UK left taxpayers with a six-figure bill in entertainment and hosting costs, it has been disclosed.

The US President’s four-day trip cost €259,690 in venue and production costs and a further €76,104 in “entertainment”, according to figures released by the UK Foreign Office on Friday.

Adding in the cost of policing the visit, the UK was left with an overall bill in excess of €16.7 million.

Mr Trump met the British Queen at Windsor Castle and was hosted by UK Prime Minister Theresa May during the July visit, which was met by mass protest.

The UK Foreign Office’s bill came in at €371,229 after factoring in transport and staffing costs.

Donald Trump met Queen Elizabeth at Windsor

This was nearly twice the cost of the King of Spain’s trip a year earlier, which was for the full pomp and grandeur of a state visit, while Mr Trump’s was billed as a working visit.

Mr Trump’s was the priciest diplomatic trip since the president of China’s state visit in 2015, which cost about €3,400 more.

The US leader’s was cheaper because there was no need for translators or accommodation, while he stayed at his ambassador’s residence and his own golf resort.

Figures obtained by the Press Association under Freedom of Information laws previously showed policing the property mogul’s visit cost €16,451,900.

Donald Trump and his wife Melania are welcomed by Theresa May and her husband Philip at Blenheim Palace

Thousands of officers were drafted in from every force in Britain to secure the trip, which began when Air Force One touched down at Stansted Airport on July 12.

Theresa May hosted Mr Trump at her Chequers country retreat and at Blenheim Palace, the birthplace of Winston Churchill.

Blenheim was the setting for the black-tie dinner where it was disclosed in a firestorm of a newspaper interview that he had criticised Mrs May’s handling of Brexit and warned her plan could “kill” any UK-US trade deal.

Policing the visit cost so much in part because of the widespread protest against Mr Trump, which included thousands of people marching in London.

The UK Home Office reimbursed €9.1 million to cover the additional costs to the three forces in England that “hosted” the president – the Metropolitan Police, Thames Valley Police (TVP) and Essex Police.

The UK Treasury was to refund Police Scotland, which spent €3.7 million while Mr Trump played golf at his Turnberry resort in Ayrshire on both days of the “private visit”.

 

- Advertisement -

More articles

- Advertisement -

Latest article