Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 3 Mar 1992

Vol. 416 No. 6

Written Answers. - Customs and Excise Personnel.

Dermot Ahern

Question:

55 Mr. D. Ahern asked the Minister for Finance if he will endeavour to replace lost jobs in Customs and Excise in the Dundalk area in County Louth with the advent of 1992 by installing an alternative operation such as the national headquarters for motor vehicle registration; and if he will outline any plans either he or the Revenue Commissioners have in this regard.

Minister for Finance (Mr. B. Ahern)

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that based on current decisions and assumptions they estimate that about 604 jobs will be lost in Customs and Excise following the completion of the Internal Market on 1 January 1993. The impact of the Internal Market changes falls unevenly on Customs and Excise locations. Understandably areas with a heavy customs preventive work element will suffer most. The Revenue Commissioners recognise that the Dundalk area is in this category along with a number of other areas such as Waterford and Donegal.

The Commissioners are endeavouring, with the co-operation of all the Civil Service unions, to find work for all the surplus staff in their present locations. As I said in my budget speech, it is essential that the surplus Customs and Excise staff are used to the maximum in the continued drive for better collection and enforcement of taxes and detection of evasion and avoidance. Full co-operation and flexibility will be required from the staff unions to achieve this objective.

The Commissioners have outlined a wide range of proposals aimed at reducing the surplus figure. Included in these proposals is the involvement of Customs and Excise staff in new areas of work which will arise post-1992 and which have the potential to provide substantial employment opportunities. One such area involves the collection of Community Intrastat statistics and the VAT information exchange system. The Government have already decided to give Revenue responsibility for this new work which will generate over 100 jobs. The commissioners have also made proposals to Government for a major role for Revenue in the administration of a new motor vehicle taxation system and the Government's decision on this matter will be made shortly.

Pending the Government decision on motor vehicle taxation and the completion of the necessary negotiations with the unions concerned the commissioners have not yet decided where to locate the administrative centres for the new work areas in question. I can, however, assure the Deputy that the Dundalk areas, being one of the areas which has a particularly severe surplus staff problem, will be high on the list of priority locations for new work, or any other option, which will alleviate the problem.