John Swinney congratulates Donald Trump on presidential election victory

Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney has congratulated Donald Trump on his victory in the US presidential election.

The SNP leader had backed Democratic candidate Kamala Harris – a move branded an “insult” by Trump’s Scottish business.

But with the former president poised to re-enter the White House, Swinney said Scotland shared “economic, social and cultural” links with the US.

He added that he would be “happy” to meet with Trump if he visited Scotland.

The president elect – whose company owns two golf courses in Scotland – is half-Scottish, with his mother Mary Anne MacLeod born and raised on the Isle of Lewis.