Raise a glass to the bromance between Trump and Swinney

‘Discussing whisky tariffs is exactly what FM should be doing’

- Ben Borland

JOHN SWINNEY found himself in some fairly exalted company on Tuesday afternoon, when he was granted a meeting with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office.

Trump has used the famous office to host a string of world leaders this year, with 14 of them invited into his gilded sanctuary during the first six months of 2025.

They include Volodymyr Zelenskyy, subjected to a stern ticking off for not wearing a suit and tie back in February, as well as Benjamin Netanyahu (twice), Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron, Georgia Meloni and Narendra Modi.

Swinney, who is, of course, not a world leader, was suitably attired in a sober black suit, white shirt and tartan tie (does he ever wear anything else?) but it may still have been an awkward encounter.

The SNP leader was accompanied by the British ambassador, Lord Mandelson, just as the "Prince of Darkness" was being revealed as Jeffrey Epstein's one-time "best pal".

The fawning correspondence between the New Labour spin doctor and the deceased billionaire paedophile and sex trafficker was released by US lawmakers on Tuesday, along with a birthday card alleged to have been signed by Trump himself.