The personal touch: Donald Trump flies in to make case for £1bn golf development

Published on Monday 9 June 2008 22:08

YOU know someone of note is arriving when their private jet is bigger than the commercial aircraft sitting on the runway.

As it dropped out of the clouds shrouding Stornoway Airport yesterday, the single word "Trump" became visible on the 727 jet. The Donald of that ilk was back in town – an hour late, but what's 60 minutes when it is nearly 60 years since you were last here?

The billionaire tycoon has chosen to personally lead his empire's bid to persuade the Scottish Government to back his controversial plan to build a 1 billion golf resort and luxury housing scheme on one of the most environmentally sensitive stretches of Scotland's coastline.

Yesterday, he made his way across the Atlantic for today's appearance at the public inquiry into his proposal – but stopped off on Lewis to re-engage with his roots by visiting the house in which his mother lived before she visited New York and met Fred Trump, Donald's father.

Trump regularly cites his Scottish background and says it is the reason he is still pursuing the development despite planning delays and fierce environmental opposition.

In all, the stop-off lasted just over two hours – before he set off for Aberdeen and the real business. But on Lewis, the traditional two-storey croft house at 5 Tong, four miles from Stornoway, is still occupied by the billionaire's cousins, Willie and Alasdair Murray.

From their front door, it was possible to see the Trump jet touch down. Forty minutes later, a four-strong fleet of cars took the tycoon, his sister Maryanne Trump Barry and a small entourage of bodyguards and publicity staff to the village in which Trump's heritage is rooted.

There was no welcoming party from the neighbours, the only figure other than the massed media waiting for his arrival being a council workman cutting the grass verge.

Arriving at 10:43, he posed for pictures with the family outside the house, and after a two-minute tour, the convoy swept off at 10:48 to a press conference.

He told reporters his last visit had been when he was three or four and his memories of the house and of the area were largely from his mother's stories.

"We are honoured to be back," he said. "I have not returned before because I've been so busy, working and having some fun in New York. I love seeing the house and have been hearing about it all my life. The house is smaller than I remember and it's hard to believe it's over 100 years old; it still looks very good."

Wasn't the look inside rather brief? "Well, I didn't want to interrupt – people live in the house and I didn't think it appropriate for me to go around making an inspection."

Trump's mother was born in 1912, the seventh child of crofter Malcolm Macleod and his wife Mary Smith. She married Fred Trump in 1936, the wedding notice from the Stornoway Gazette announcing the news as Tong Girl Weds Abroad.

Fred Trump later became one of the city's biggest developers and the couple, who were married for 63 years, had five children. Mary died in 2000, a year after her husband.

Trump said his mother would have returned to Lewis had she not met his father. Does he feel Scottish? "I think I do, although I don't want you to ask me to define what that means. But I do feel I have something very strong from my mother." He said he hopes to return "within the year" and plans to bring his two-year-old son, Barron William.

Trump's sister is a frequent visitor to Lewis. She said: "My mother would be so proud to see Donald here today. All the work he's done, this television star that he is. I love him and he's never forgotten where he came from."

The tycoon denied the visit was a publicity stunt ahead of the inquiry: "I thought this was the right time to come. We were going to stop here on the way out, but it was very hard to determine how long I am going to be testifying."

The golf resort, he said, was a chance to do "something historic" for Scotland as well as Aberdeen. "If it were not for my mother would I have walked away from the site? I think probably I would have. The reason I got involved was because of the feeling I had for Scotland."

The cousins were left to reflect on a whirlwind visit. Willie, who had met Donald only once previously, in the 1970s, said: "It went very well. It was a bit of a scrum, right enough, but he was terrific and he enjoyed the trip to Tong."

His brother Alasdair said: "I had never met him before but he came across as a very genuine guy."

IN NUMBERS

300 million and 800 acres

Original estimated cost and size of the golf resort.

1 billion and 1,400 acres

Revised estimated cost and extended site for the new proposed development.

450

bedrooms planned for five-star luxury hotel to be sited on road known as Trump Boulevard.

952

timeshare apartments planned to be built in four blocks of 238 apartments.

500

residential homes planned.

300

acres of land zoned for potential future residential developments.

13

endangered or vulnerable species at the site.

19

nationally important species of lichen and fungi on site.

99 million

Annual expenditure, according to a report produced for the Trump Organisation.

6,230

construction jobs to be created.

1,180

permanent on-site jobs.