Donald Trump is following up his dire warnings about the future of Europe by cracking on with the real business of his trip to Scotland: a few rounds of golf.
The US President landed at Prestwick Airport in Ayrshire yesterday evening for his first UK visit since returning to the White House in January.
It took only a few minutes after stepping off Air Force One for Trump to begin predicting doom for the West due to immigration.
He told reporters: ‘On immigration, you better get your act together. You’re not going to have Europe anymore, you’ve got to get your act together.’
The President claimed nobody had entered the US last month before describing the situation faced by Europe as a ‘horrible invasion’.
His British mini-break will begin with a day of golf at his Turnberry course on the Ayrshire coast.
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More serious discussions with leaders including Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Scottish First Minister John Swinney and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will come on Sunday and Monday.
Police in Scotland are bracing for a major operation as protesters begin to gather at a number of spots Trump is expected to visit on his brief tour.
The presidential motorcade, containing more than two dozen vehicles, passed a small protest on its way into Turnberry yesterday evening but demonstrations are expected to swell today.
Later, the entourage will travel east across Scotland to Aberdeen and another of Trump’s links courses near Balmedie, on the coast north of the city.
Scottish Secretary Ian Murray, who met the President at Prestwick just after he arrived at around 8.30pm yesterday, said Trump’s first words after stepping off the plane were: ‘It’s great to be here, I always love standing on the soil of Scotland.’
Murray added: ‘I said, “I hope you’re looking forward to a bit of downtime with some golf this weekend”, and he said, “Yes”.
‘And I said, “Well, we’ve whipped up a bit of a wind for you to make it a bit more competitive”, and he went, “I’m looking forward to it”.’
Trump is expected to meet with von der Leyen tomorrow in an effort to thrash out a trade deal between the EU and the US.
The EU has been one of the biggest targets of the tariff campaign from the White House since dramatic new trade measures were announced at the beginning of April.
Starmer is understood to be travelling to Scotland on Monday for a meeting with the President, where the finer details of the UK’s trade deal with the US are likely to be discussed.
Speaking at Prestwick yesterday, Trump said: ‘I like your Prime Minister, he’s slightly more liberal than I am – as you probably heard – but he’s a good man. He got a trade deal done.’
He also suggested the meeting would be taking place this evening, which is not believed to be accurate.
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