The European Customs Union: 40 years of success

On 1 July 2008, the European Union (EU) will celebrate the 40th anniversary of its Customs Union. This is a very considerable achievement of which we can be proud. We have gone very far during these 40 years in building a unified Customs entity. Now, what does the future hold? How will the role of Customs change? Can Customs continue to evolve to meet new challenges, as well as the expectations of our nearly 500 million citizens? I suggest that we should not be passive spectators to the events around us, but that we should actively respond to change.