A horse racing enterprise in Co. Kildare received over €200,000 in direct payments in 2018, as well as almost €4,000 as an area facing natural/specific constraints.

Kildangan Stud, approximately 20km west of Newbridge, is operated by the horse racing business Godolphin Ireland, which is owned by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, a businessman and politician from the United Arab Emirates.

According to the data revealed by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Godolphin received €200,530.91 in direct payments throughout 2018.

For comparison, the highest direct payment received throughout 2018 by any farmer or entity was €323,292.31.

Godolphin operates eight stud farms in Ireland: five in Co. Kildare; two in Co. Tipperary; and one in Co. Meath.

The group was founded in the early 1990s by Al-Maktoum, a businessman with interests around the world, especially in Dubai; he is recognised as a major driving force behind the city’s development.

Politically, he is also the ruler of Dubai, as well as prime minister and vice-president of the United Arab Emirates, of which Dubai is a state.

Unsurprisingly, Godolphin Ireland was the recipient of the highest CAP direct payment in Co. Kildare; this ranked seventh out of the 12 counties in Leinster.