Donald Trump is one of Brexit’s biggest cheerleaders. Now his Scottish golf courses are taking the blame after more than $5m in losses

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Donald Trump is a staunch supporter of Brexit. But his Scottish golf resorts are where he draws the line.

Former presidents at UK-based golfing havens lost more than $5 million in the last financial year.

Trumps Turnberry resort in Ayrshire Scotland recorded a 3.7 million ($4.5 million) pre-tax loss for 2021, while Trump International Golf Club Limited, parent of another course in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, reported another 697,000 ($853,000) in loss before tax.

The figures were revealed Thursday in delayed filings, and according to SLC Turnberry, whose directors are listed as Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., the UK’s departure from the European Union is to blame.

Trump first hailed Brexit as a likely boon for his business in 2016, saying that “when the pound goes down, more people come to Turnberry, frankly”.

But Brexit has affected the resort’s staff pool, according to the new filing, “with a lack of access to European staff for businesses in general resulting in greater demand for individuals previously available at the resort. “

Supply chains have also been affected by Brexit and fewer drivers are available, the document states, “reducing deliveries and the availability of some product lines. Prices have risen from additional freight charges and import duty.

The filings also partially blame COVID-19, noting that the UK’s response to COVID-19 resulted in a three-month resort closure at the start of 2021. The documents state that they have returned to trading levels prior to COVID after a while due to staycation tourists who can’t travel abroad.

The UK government has given companies that run each golf course just over 1 million in total COVID payroll support.

Financial problems persist

Trump bought his Turnberry golf resort in 2014 from a Dubai-based company for $60 million; it is now used for the Open Championships and has a five star hotel and spa. The Trump International Golf Club was built from the ground up after Trump bought 1,400 acres of land in 2006 and promised it would be The worlds best golf course.

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However, that didn’t go to plan. Turnberry has never turned a profit since it was acquired by the Trump family, and its turnover more than halved between 2019 and 2020. It recorded a loss of more than 3 million in 2020 and in the same year, its course in Aberdeenshire recorded a loss of 1.3 million.

Golf Recreation Scotland Limited, the holding company that owns SLC Turnberry and lists Eric Trump as its sole director, lost 14.7 million in 2021, mostly due to foreign currency exchange losses.

All of this only adds to Trumps other significant financial problems revealed in the tax returns he was forced to release in December 2022.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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