143. Deputy Patricia Ryan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide the numbers of sheep currently being grazed on the Curragh, County Kildare, that are being used to claim EU farm subsidies, in tabular form. [43498/24]

The lands identified as the Curragh of Kildare are vested with the Minister of Defence under the Curragh of Kildare Act 1961.

Annual permission to graze sheep on the Curragh lands is granted by the Maor of The Curragh as part of the responsibilities conferred on the office by the Minister of Defence.

Applicants under farm schemes administered by my Department who claim a share of the lands of the Curragh, as part of their overall holding, are required to submit confirmation to my department indicating the total numbers of sheep they are permitted to graze on the Curragh. These claims are processed as part of the Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) and other area-based schemes application.

In 2023, a total of 5,997 unique grazing rights were allocated to grazers of the Curragh lands and final processing of 2024 claims by my Department is still on-going.