John Swinney used a July meeting with US President Donald Trump to make a pitch for Scottish independence, government documents have revealed.
Minutes of the breakfast confab, held on July 29th during Mr Trump’s visit to his Scottish golf properties, were obtained via Freedom of Information (FOI) legislation.
The Herald can also reveal that the week before the meeting, a top Swinney aide warned of "heightened sensitivies" over the government's decision to award £180,000 in funding to a golf event at Mr Trump's Aberdeenshire property.
The revelations come as the First Minister joined King Charles and Sir Keir Starmer in welcoming Mr Trump to the UK at a state dinner on Wednesday evening.
The official record stated: “In addition, the First Minister and the President discussed Scotland’s constitutional future, with the First Minister setting out his view of the need for Scotland to have the ability to decide its future for itself.”
Mr Swinney and Mr Trump were joined by the president’s sons Eric and Don Jr, as well as the First Minister’s Principal Private Secretary and Chief of Staff.
The minutes read: “The President welcomed the First Minister, introducing him to the wider family. The First Minister thanked the President for the dinner the previous evening and for making time to see him over breakfast.”
The pair discussed a range of topics, with three issues forming the “main focus”: whisky tariffs, customs pre-clearance at Scottish airports, and the war in Gaza.
“The President reflected on the aid the United States of America had committed to help the people of Gaza,” the record states. “The First Minister expressed his view that the President was in a unique position to make further interventions to end the war and save lives.
“The meeting concluded with the President reflecting on the beauty of the new golf course at Trump International resort at Menie.”
An email chain shows a flurry of activity in the days before Mr Trump’s visit, as special advisors rushed to obtain Mr Swinney’s sign-off on £180,000 in funding for the NEXO Golf Championship.
In an email to officials on July 21st, four days before Mr Trump’s arrival in Ayrshire, top advisor Ross Ingebrigtsen asked: “Did the FM indicate he was content, including with the funding? I think he should be aware of this – there are obviously heightened sensitivities at the moment.”
In an email sent later that day, a representative from Visit Scotland, who had proposed the funding, wrote:
“This urgent note is to make the First Minister aware of VisitScotland’s intention to invest [redacted] into the Nexo Golf Championship which will be held at the Trump International Golf Links in Aberdeen from 7-10 August, and to seek confirmation that FM is content.
“This DP World Tour event has been brought to Scotland at very short notice as a consequence of the Czech Republic pulling out of a hosting agreement.
“With apologies for flagging this as immediate, we would welcome FM’s view as soon as possible please. This is in light of the fact that the event is less than three weeks away.”
The next morning, someone from Mr Swinney’s office responded: “Good morning, The First Minister is content to proceed.”
While it was initially announced that the funding would be used to support the ‘delivery’ of the golfing event; the Sunday Mail revealed the cash was spent on various forms of advertising; including a 30 second digital spot, a large Visit Scotland sign, and several billboards near the golf course.
The Scottish Government was slammed by Patrick Harvie of the Scottish Greens, who called Mr Swinney’s decision "embarrassing", while former SNP MP Hannah Bardell said many in the party would feel “uncomfortable” over the allocation of the funds.
Despite this criticism, Mr Swinney has continued to nurture his relationship with the American president in recent months.
In an unprecedented development, the First Minister visited the Oval Office on September 9th, speaking to Mr Trump for fifty minutes about the need to scrap a ten percent charge on Scottish whisky exports.
At the time, he said: “When President Trump came to Scotland in July, we raised Scotch whisky with him and got it on the trade deal agenda.
"Now, with just over a week to go before the President makes a state visit to the UK, we have a critical chance to follow up and make the case for a better deal.”
On Wednesday evening, Mr Swinney attended a state banquet in the president’s honour at Windsor Castle, despite the ire of those on the Scottish left.
Read more:
Donald Trump ‘deeply touched’ by John Swinney gift
Constance defends Swinney amid SNP backlash over Trump banquet
Brian Taylor: How to respond to Trump? Swinney gets it right – eventually
Senior SNP MP Chris Law was left red-faced after posting on X: “Sitting at tonight's banquet dinner with President Donald Trump is conceding that it's acceptable to support #GenocideinGaza after yesterday's publication of UNs report on Gaza.”
The post, which was later deleted, was echoed by Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer, who said: “John Swinney certainly would not go to dinner with Vladimir Putin or Benjamin Netanyahu, and there is no moral distinction between those men and Trump.
“You don’t defeat the far right by dining with them in a grand palace. You do it by taking them on, exposing their lies and making our economy far less reliant on theirs. The best thing we can do to support Scottish businesses currently exporting to the US is a relentless focus on diversifying into less risky markets.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "The President showed a deep and wide-ranging interest in Scotland and the First Minister will always engage positively with world leaders. As always, the First Minister was enthusiastic in his lifelong belief that Independence offers the best future for our country."
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