Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Customs officers, when they have probable cause for detention or seizure, must be protected when enforcing the law. This type of protection has existed for customs officials this since the early days of customs law and also exists for other officials of the State enforcing law. For example, Revenue officials enforcing excise law have had this protection since the early days of excise and it was renewed in the 2001 Finance Act. If the court or judge fails to find that the customs official had any probable cause for detention or seizure, the section does not provide any protection and the owner or holder of the goods seized can, if they so wish, seek compensation through the courts.