John Swinney has been urged to keep Donald Trump at arm’s length by a former presidential aide who warned he does not care about Scotland.

Anthony Scaramucci, who was Trump's communications director in 2017, warned Mr Swinney and his government to focus on domestic issues whilst keeping Trump on the sidelines as “not only is he unreliable, he’ll hurt you."

Mr Swinney previously said he would put Trump's love of Scotland to use if it protects the country from potentially damaging tariffs on exports to the United States.

However, Mr Scaramucci said he should not be fooled by Trump’s claims of affinity for his country, ignorant perhaps of the president's huge investment in the Scottish economy over more than a decade.

Scaramucci said: “He’ll hurt your first minister if he gets too close to him or even tries to have a relationship with him.”

Similar warnings were shared about Elon Musk who will now lead Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency.

He said: “The guy’s nuts. And I think your first minister is correct in his assessment that he’s gotta be cautious because you want, in business, is predictability.”

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