V. Speaking and Mastering Professional Skills

Task 20. All passages in the text are mixed up. Put them in the right order and read the text. Summarize it giving your opinion on the idea of the text.

How Customs Works

Any nation wants its own businesses to do well, so most of the time they prefer their people buy domestic goods over competing foreign goods. But in many cases, goods are available cheaper in another country than in your country, and people naturally want to buy them at the lower price. To tilt the balance in favor of domestic businesses, governments impose tariffs, also called duty, on foreign goods coming into the country.

To control specific sorts of trade, a government may impose a higher tariff on certain types of goods (alcohol, for example). Certain countries may join together to work out mutually beneficial trade agreements, enabling businesses in those nations to trade more freely with each other than they can with businesses in other nations. This gives an advantage to nations that a country has a good relationship with.

A nation's customs service has many responsibilities. At its most basic level, its purpose is to regulate what comes into and goes out of a country. The foremost element of this regulation is controlling international trade.

Customs agencies also monitor what is being exported from a country. For example, most governments strictly regulate what weapons can be exported to other nations. This is simply a common-sense safety measure: it's not a good idea to arm enemy nations, so the government has to know who is buying any domestically-produced weaponry. Сustoms agencies also pay careful attention to how much money citizens are transporting out of the country.

Some customs agencies decide which travelers to search based on random chance. Unlike the police, customs agents are fully authorized to search your luggage, clothes and even your body without any warrant or reason for suspicion. Customs agents often work side-by-side with immigration officials, and in some ports of entry, one inspector may represent both agencies. But at its core, a customs agency is concerned with the things that are coming in and out of a country, rather than the travelers themselves.

In most countries, it isn't feasible for the customs agency to check all of the goods that every single traveler is importing, so governments have to depend largely on people's honesty. When you enter a country, you are asked to truthfully report what goods you are importing and make a good faith estimate of their value. They don't put their entire trust in people's good character, of course; customs performs a thorough search of some percentage of all travelers.

 (by Tom Harris, Science | Modern, abridged)

Task 20. Complete the definitions:

1. An architect designs buildings.

2. A university lecturer ______________________________.

3. A vet ______________________________.

4. A designer ______________________________.

5. A lawyer _____________________________.

6. An engineer ______________________________.

7. A customs officer ______________________________.

8. A dog handler ______________________________.

9. A police officer ______________________________.

10. A border guard ______________________________.

11. A president ______________________________.

12. A smuggler ______________________________.

Task 21. Say if it is true or false.

1. The assessment of import duties and taxes is the least important function in every customs organization.

2. Cargo shipments entering the country are to be supplied with supporting documents excluding commercial invoices.

3. Cargo shipments are inspected for duty collection only.

4. Specially trained drug-detector dogs are sometimes more effective than traditional methods of detecting contraband.

5. The most common customs violations are: duty, tax and penalty.

6. Laboratory analyses are performed in order to prevent currency violation.

 

Task 22. Study the linking words below and say whether they are in regular use.

 

So that

He says so that I may hear: “Put your bags on the counter”.

So as to

so…as to

That’s why

Yes that’ why I am looking for you. I need your help.

By way of

Now that

And now that this has already happened, why do I have to ask silly questions?

By all means / by any means

By no means

For me failure is never an easy thing to put up with but is by no means a reason to give up.

Either way

Either way I can’t believe it.

In the way of

He’s found no evidence in the way of not relying on his close friends.

By the same token

As usual

As a rule

Your training is therefore, as a rule, a good asset for easier recruitment.

At that rate

As if

She said it as if I didn’t exist. As if I had never been around her.

All in all

All in all, I would prefer to forget it.

All but

Our hope is all but gone… We plead for rescue now from anywhere.

To no end

We know you miss us to no end.

However much

However much you ask me to stay longer, I have to go.

 

Task 23. Discuss the following questions with your partners.

 

1. Are all the Customs Service’s responsibilities equally important?

2. Which customs operations would you like to be involved in? Why?

3. Will the functions of the Customs be the same in 50 years time?

Task 25. Get ready to speak on the topic. Use the vocabulary of the unit.

Task 26. Complete the dialogue and reproduce it with your partner.

 

C.O. - Will you show your belongings, please.

P.._ -_____________________________

C.O. - How many pieces do you have?

P.._ -_____________________________

C.O. - Do you have anything to declare?

P.._ -______________________________

C.O. - This quantity is not liable to duty and what do you have in your suitcase?

P.._ -_____________________________

C.O. - Thank you. That’s all.

P.._ -_____________________________

 

 

Task 27. Role-play.

Scenario

You are at the conference devoted to Customs operations. One student is the chairman and he hosts the conference. Other students represent heads of different departments of customs service (according to text I, Unit 3). They should present the work of their department (2-3 min) and answer the questions of conference participants and other Customs representatives. (Questions should be prepared beforehand).

Characters:

chairman, spokesman of the Federal Customs Service, head of Law Enforcement Department, head of Department of International Customs Cooperation, head of Regional Intelligence Liaison Office (RILO), head of Trade Restrictions, Currency and Export Control Department, head of Finance Department, head of General Directorate for combating smuggling

Back stage warm-up

A script writer drafts the questions and hands them over to performers. The performers write their papers of presentation

List of questions:

1. What is a comprehensive program of development for the Federal Customs Service to this date?

2. What would you say about the quality of financial management carried out by the Federal Customs Service of Russia?

3. What are customs payments in the income of the Federal budget?

4. Does the Federal Customs Service of Russia participate in international organizations and interstate associations? If so, would you say how effectively.

5. How does the Federal Customs Service of Russia facilitate the trade between Russia and other countries?

6. What is so special about combating smuggling by the customs authorities in Russia?

7. What measures are taken by the customs authorities in Russia to counter drug trafficking?

8.  Can you say that the law enforcement activity of the customs authorities in Russia is recognized far beyond the country? If so, then what for?

Performance

The chairman addresses the audience with a greeting speech. A spokesman of the Federal Customs Service introduces the participants. All the speakers present their papers and ask the questions.

Review

A panel of jury from the audience reviews the performance

Task 28. Make up situations illustrating the following proverbs and sayings.

 

1. Actions speak louder than words.

2. One is never too old to learn.

3. East or West home is best.

4. Experience is the mother of wisdom.

5. One man, no man.

VI. Givingapresentation

Task 29.Which is the box:

1  on the right?

2  in the centre?

3  across the top?

4  on the left?

5  down the left side of the slide?

6  n the bottom left-hand corner?

7  in the upper right-hand corner?

8  across the bottom?