Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

I make this reply on behalf of the Minister for Finance and the Customs Service of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners. I thank Deputy Burton for raising this matter.

The Customs Service of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners has primary responsibility for the prevention, detection, interception and seizure of controlled drugs at importation. It has particular responsibility for implementing import controls at points of entry to the State, specifically at ports and airports, including licensed airfields, and on the land frontier. The control of licensed airfields in the State is carried out by customs enforcement teams. Those are dedicated anti-smuggling teams that focus on the smuggling of prohibited drugs and fiscal products.

Other duties undertaken by officers in attending licensed airfields include the clearance of aircraft and passengers arriving from third countries, spot checks on EU flights, the verification of fuel drawback claims, verification of end-use authorisations, clearance of aircraft under transfer of residence, and checks on private aircraft to ensure compliance with import procedures.

Best practice in customs administration worldwide shows that the development of information and intelligence is critical to the detection of drug smuggling. In Ireland, this has become very important since the completion of the Single Market in 1993, based as it is on the free movement of goods and people within the Community. As EU citizens have the right of free movement, Revenue has no power to stop an EU citizen except on the basis of a suspicion, normally grounded in specific intelligence.

A number of years ago, Revenue introduced a memorandum of understanding initiative, which involved reaching agreement with a number of organisations, trade associations and individual companies in the transport industry to encourage them to join the fight against drug smuggling as part of the Customs Drugs Watch programme. The programme incorporates a coastal and airfield reporting system whereby local customs officers visit all licensed aerodromes and airfields regularly. They have put in place a confidential system of communication between the licensed aerodrome operators and customs enforcement. Through this network, which is two-way, officers have discussed with the operators such matters as known methods used by drug smugglers and indicators of suspicious activity. This can help the operators in identifying situations and activities that may indicate a drug smuggling operation is under way and which they should report. This reporting system is an important element in the fight against drug smuggling.

In addition to local intelligence, the Customs and Excise shares and receives information and intelligence on drug smuggling from a number of international bodies, including the World Customs Organisation, United Nations Drug Control Programme, Interpol, Council of Europe, Europol and the UK's Serious Organised Crime Agency.

Customs and Excise liaises on an ongoing basis with other national and international enforcement services such as the Garda Síochána, the Naval Service, the Air Corps, and foreign customs and police services. It takes part regularly in European, bilateral and national surveillance operations focused on specific drug smuggling methodologies, including general aviation. Some of these operations have been specifically directed at light aircraft and helicopter movements.

The Deputy will appreciate that it would be inappropriate for the Minister to comment in detail on specific operations in the criminal area of drug smuggling. The reported seizure earlier this week in Belgium of 50 kg of heroin, the arrest of three Irish nationals and the seizure of an aircraft based at Weston Aerodrome are of major concern to the Revenue Commissioners. To give an indication of the volume of arrivals in the State through Weston, the Minister understands that from February 2006 to the end of July 2006 there have been 142 flight arrivals from EU countries there and five from non-EU countries. This is in comparison with 1,500 flights every week arriving in Dublin Airport. It should be noted that drugs to the value of €6.7 million have been seized by Customs and Excise to date in 2006 at Dublin Airport.

In 2004, officers attached to the Dublin enforcement district carried out 12 planned and six unplanned visits to Weston. During 2005, ten planned and six unplanned and to-date in 2006, 11 planned and three unplanned visits have been made to Weston by officers of the Revenue's customs service.

In light of the Belgian seizure this week, the Minister is advised that the Revenue Commissioners are reviewing the risks attached to the operation of, and procedures attaching to, all 27 licensed aerodromes in the State, including in particular Weston. I am assured that the monitoring of licensed aerodromes in the State by the Revenue Commissioners is in line with international standards. The Revenue's customs service is continually engaged in the analysis and evaluation of seizure trends, routes and smuggling risks and consequential resource deployment. All Customs and Excise operations are risk focused, and staff are deployed to combat areas of greatest risk. The level of activity at licensed aerodromes is constantly monitored from a risk perspective.

However, in light of the concerns raised by the seizure this week, the conditions under which the Revenue Commissioners approve licensed aerodromes will be immediately reviewed. The review will include options for improving the level of control and prior reporting of arrivals from EU and non-EU countries. Revenue will also review the frequency of checking incoming flights to these aerodromes.

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