Government goes down under in drugs war

The Government has gone down under to devise its latest strategy for curbing illegal drugs imports.

A new drugs watch programme, launched by the Revenue Commissioners, draws heavily on the Australian experience, thanks to the introduction of a similar system by the customs authorities there about 20 years ago.

The plan will concentrate on encouraging members of the public - particularly those living close to coastal areas of the country, or caught up in maritime, transport or travel activities - to join the fight against drugs-smuggling by noting and reporting anything at all suspicious or unusual.

A special set of information booklets, calling cards and posters have been produced as part of the campaign.

They will be circulated to people in those areas, mainly on Ireland’s southern coastline, where there are suspicion illicit drugs bound for the British as well as the Irish market are often landed at isolated locations on what is effectively the most western point of Europe.

The Australian way of dealing with the problem has been taken on board by a significant number of customs services internationally since first being tried, and a variety was initially introduced in Ireland in the mid-1990s.

The latest Irish scheme will complement an existing programme that fosters co-operation between customs officers and the international trade community in efforts to combat drug trafficking. That allows for individual agreements with organisations currently representing about 1,500 companies.

Revenue Commissioner Josephine Feehily said: “The new scheme is of particular importance to the customs service of a country like Ireland because of its location as the most remote and westerly country and because of the unique difficulties in patrolling a coastline 2,800 kilometres long, with a proliferation of landing points, remote piers and coves and secluded landing areas.

“I would urge people to co-operate with the programme.”