Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 7 Apr 1992

Vol. 418 No. 4

Written Answers. - Customs and Excise Personnel.

Bernard Allen

Ceist:

76 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Finance if he will give details of the total number and allocation of Customs and Excise personnel employed in Cork city and county and the number who will be affected by the open market from January, 1993; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Finance (Mr. B. Ahern)

The details requested regarding Customs and Excise personnel employed in Cork city and county are as follows:

	At present serving	Required post-1992 to perform traditional Customs and Excise work	Surplus staff figure
Cork City and Port	104	78	26
Cork Airport	17	9	8
Other Locations in Cork County:
Balineen	1	1	Nil
Bantry	4	4	Nil
Castletownbere	1	Nil	1
Kinsale	1	Nil	1
Midleton	10	10	Nil
Whitegate	2	2	Nil
Mallow	1	1	Nil
Totals	141	105	36

Overall the commissioners estimate that about 604 Customs and Excise staff will be surplus to requirements following the completion of the Internal Market on 1 January 1993.

The Revenue Commissioners are endeavouring with the co-operation of all the Civil Service unions to find work for 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 put forward specific proposals for the absorption of surplus staff within Revenue through the expansion of some existing functions of the Customs and Excise service especially the strengthening of the common external frontier, increased control of drugs and other illicit traffic, improved Common Agricultural Policy control and post importation audit work. The involvement of Customs and Excise staff in other Revenue work programmes is also under active consideration. The decision of the Government to give Revenue responsibility for the new work arising post-1992 relating to the collection of Community Intrastate statistics and the VAT information exchange system will generate over 100 jobs. The Government will make a decision shortly on the commissioners proposals for a major role for Revenue in the administration and control of a new motor vehicle taxation system.

The Revenue Commissioners have made it clear, however, that the total surplus number cannot be contained in Revenue and they are, therefore, discussing with the unions proposals for the absorption of Customs and Excise staff into the wider Civil Service and public service.

The Revenue Commissioners have put a lot of effort into designing a strategy, the ultimate aim of which is to ensure that, to the greatest extent possible, a career is provided for all Customs and Excise staff in, or close to, their present locations. In keeping the human and domestic factors to the forefront, I would hope that through co-operative flexibility on all sides this aim can be achieved.