World Customs Organisation (WCO) honours 10 Irish Customs Officials
Theme: "The fight against drug trafficking".
As part of international Customs day the World Customs Organisation (WCO), today (25/01/2008) presented ten officials from Revenue’s Customs Service with "World Customs Organisation Certificates". Revenue Commissioner, Josephine Feehily who is Vice-Chairperson of the WCO, presented the awards on behalf of the Secretary General of the WCO in recognition of "exceptional meritorious service".
Every year the WCO select a theme to give further impetus to measures aimed at either facilitating international trade or enforcing Customs controls. This year, the theme for International Customs Day is "The fight against drug trafficking".
Last year Irish Customs officers seized drugs with an estimated street value of €135.2 million, including 1550Kgs of cocaine at Dunlough Bay, Cork in July.
Speaking at today’s ceremony on the challenges facing Irish Customs, Commissioner Feehily said:
"We know that globalisation and increased wealth have generated a boom in demand for illicit drugs and a bonanza for suppliers. Traffickers are expert in seeking the easiest options to get their product to market. They have no qualms about changing the routing, means of transport or using intermediate transhipment to access their markets.". …"In Revenue we have committed substantial additional resources to Customs on an on-going basis, including additional staff, more dog detector teams, the commissioning of the Revenue Customs Cutter Suirbhéir and the mobile X-ray Scanning Unit, and increased international co-operation."
"Revenue staff involved in the fight against drug trafficking do a very difficult job balancing the Internal Market freedoms with the need for targeted intervention and today is a day to say thanks."
[Ends 25/01/2008]