Daniel Sanderson, Scottish Political Correspondent
DONALD Trump has had his status as a business ambassador for Scotland
withdrawn by Nicola Sturgeon following the presidential candidate’s
inflammatory comments about Muslims.
The Scottish Government said that the business tycoon, whose mother was
born in Stornoway, was no longer fit to be part of the GlobalScot business
network which he joined in 2006.
It comes after the SNP’s international development minister Humza Yousaf
called for the Home Secretary to consider banning Mr Trump, who has drawn
criticism from across the globe after calling for Muslims to be banned from
America in light of recent terrorist attacks, from the UK.
A spokeswoman for the Scottish Government said: “Mr Trump’s recent remarks
have shown that he is no longer fit to be a business ambassador for
Scotland and the First Minister has decided his membership of the respected
GlobalScot business network should be withdrawn with immediate effect.”
The move the revoke Mr Trump’s membership of the GlobalScot network is
another sign of the deterioration in his once-friendly relationship with
the devolved Government in Edinburgh.
GlobalScot status was first conferred on Mr Trump when Jack McConnell was
Labour First Minister, while he described Alex Salmond as an “amazing man”
in 2008 when the then SNP Scottish Government intervened in controversial
plans to build a golf course and luxury hotel in Aberdeenshire.
The pair later fell out over plans to develop an offshore wind farm near to
the development, with Mr Trump claiming the then-First Minister and SNP
leader told him over an intimate dinner in New York that the turbines would
not be built.
Lord McConnell, while he was First Minister, tried to create a unique
honour in honour of Mr Trump by making him a “platinum” member of the
GlobalScot network of influential pro-Scottish business people but saw the
request rebuffed by officials.
Mr Trump, who also has an honorary degree from Robert Gordon University,
has regularly boasted of his ancestral links to Scotland. His mother, Mary
MacLeod, grew up in a croft on the Isle of Lewis until she landed in
Manhattan at the age of 20.
He has said that when embarking on a new golfing enterprise in Europe,
Scotland was his first choice due to his heritage, and has attributed his
success in business in part to his roots.
Upon making Mr Trump a GlobalScot, Lord McConnell said: “Donald has shown
me a real passion for Scotland. He is a globally recognised figure who can
help us to promote Scotland. I am delighted that he has taken up my offer.
This is a good bit of business for all concerned.”
At the time, Mr Trump said: “I am also very pleased to have been asked to
join the Globalscot network. For a long time I’ve been aware that Scottish
people are fiercely proud of Scotland and that they like to help their
fellow countrymen.”
In 2012, Green Party co-convenor Partick Harvie urged the SNP Government to
strip “rich American windbag” Mr Trump of his GlobalScot status following
his vociferous opposition to the Aberdeenshire offshore windfarm. Then, the
Scottish Government said the move would not “send out the right signal or
serve any purpose”.
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