Donald Trump protests planned for Edinburgh and Aberdeen ahead of President's arrival
Donald Trump is expected to be met with a wave of protests upon his arrival to Scotland tomorrow.
The US president is preparing to touch-down for a five-day private visit to his luxury golf resorts at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire. While it is not a formal trip, he will meet with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Monday.
There are also suggestions that there are plans for Trump to meet with First Minister John Swinney. The Stop Trump Coalition confirmed that it is organising events in Aberdeen in the city centre and outside the US consulate in Edinburgh on Saturday at midday.
There is also planned activity around Turnberry and Menie, where Trump is expected to open a new 18-hole golf course named in honour of his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod Trump, born on the Isle of Lewis.
Earlier this week, Police Scotland's Assistant chief constable Emma Bond said the force will take a 'proportionate' approach to ensure people can protest safely.
Activists will take to the streets upon Trump's arrival to express 'widespread anger' over the president's policies.
Connor Dylan, the organiser of the anti-Trump protests in Aberdeen and Edinburgh, told the Guardian: 'The vast majority of people in Scotland were already opposed to everything Trump stood for when he first visited as president.
"As we've learned more and more about him and the way he governs, that attitude has only hardened.
'His politics – and those of the people around him – have only become more extreme since then, with once fringe ideas like mass deportations now part of mainstream American politics and being effectively exported to the UK and other European countries by far-right allies.'
Fellow organiser Alena Ivanova added: 'There's a widespread anger and determination to come out from people across Scotland and calling on our elected leaders not to give Trump the acknowledgement and welcome he wants.'
Meanwhile, the Scottish Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, said policing will be 'seriously affected' during Trump's visit.
The federation claimed workforce agreements previously agreed by Police Scotland bosses were being "breached in the days leading to the arrival of the President".
David Kennedy, SPF general secretary, said: "The reality is, if we had more police officers, we could ask for less mutual aid. We have been saying this for years now. We've seen a cut in police numbers and a cut in real time funding.
"We'll survive these events, but surviving is not as good as coping and being proactive when they are announced. The situation is not sustainable. It's destroying cops, they are absolutely shattered. It's not a good place to be at the moment."
He added: "We currently have workforce agreements in place to protect police officers and provide minimum standards of Health and Safety at work. Sadly, we have seen these agreements breached in the days leading to the arrival of the president and as such we are seeking legal advice regarding potential legal action against the service."
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