§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many searches were carried out by persons connected with Her Majesty's Customs and Excise during December 1976 of the MV "Crail" bound for Saudi Arabia; who took part in these searches; what were the costs involved; and what was the purpose.
514W
§ Mr. Robert SheldonThe MV "Crail" reported its cargo as timber loaded in Sweden and remaining on board for carriage to Saudi Arabia. It was inspected by Customs staff on 7th and 8th December 1976 using Army sniffer dogs. As a result, the Customs did not consider that they would be justified in taking the unusual step of requiring discharge at their expense of a cargo in transit to another country. No special Customs costs arose since the staff concerned acted in the course of their normal duties.