The European Commission established a fund of 30 million ecu (approximately £IR24 million) under Council Regulation 3904/92 on measures to adapt the profession of customs agent to the internal market, to provide assistance to Irish customs clearance firms with diversification plans, principally by way of training and retraining measures. Apart from this scheme there was no provision for compensatory payments as such to the customs clearance agents in Ireland when customs clearance was abolished.
Under the regulation, Community assistance was to be provided for the following measures: management of the conversion or restructuring of companies, in particular by market studies and research; technology transfer, including the collection and dissemination of information, and innovation within companies; assistance in the creation or maintenance of long-term employment; and vocational training for employees and any measures to facilitate such training.
Ireland was allocated 526,038 ecus (IR£420,830) from the fund on the basis of the number of jobs threatened here as a percentage of the EU total. As the financing was to be provided under the European Social Fund, the scheme was managed by the Department of Enterprise and Employment.
The European Council regulation establishing the scheme required member states to consult relevant professional and social interest groups before submitting applications for aid to Brussels. The Department of Enterprise and Employment provided details of the scheme to the following representative organisations: The Association of Customs Clearance Agents of Rosslare; The Irish Customs Clearance Agents' Association; The Irish Ship Agents' Association; The Border Customs Clearance Association; and The Institute of Freight Forwarders in Ireland.
Applications for retraining programmes were to be submitted to FÁS; applications for business diversification projects were to be submitted directly to the Department of Enterprise and Employment.