A new $2.6 million X-ray scanning system for Hamilton docks will be in operation by March, the Collector of Customs said.Winniefred Fostine-DeSilva told a press conference that the building housing the X-ray equipment was already “up and running” and that the unit itself would be working “sometime in March”.The X-ray unit aimed at stemming the flow of guns and drugs to the Island was expected to be in operation by the end of 2010.But the Corporation of Hamilton said last summer its installation would be delayed until this year due to problems getting immigration clearance for overseas engineers and the late arrival of construction materials.National Security Minister David Burch yesterday deferred a question about the new system to Ms Fostine-DeSilva, saying she would “be probably more intimately involved in this than me”.“We are on target to have it come on line,” he added.Senator Burch told the press conference he wanted Bermuda to have “exit immigration” to ensure illegal money and drugs were seized before leaving the country.“What that means is that you have immigration officers who vet those people leaving the jurisdiction,” he said.Revealing that customs officers seized more than $190,000 in cash from illegal activity during 2010, he admitted it was only recovered due to an “ad hoc arrangement” for vetting people leaving the Island.Sen Burch admitted: ‘It’s not a coordinated effort at all.” He said he’d like to see much tighter exit controls in place “but that takes money”.He said the Finance Minister had made it clear “money is tight” so his Ministry would look at whether there was a way of reallocating resources.“Border control is increasingly important in the fight on crime here at home,” said the Minister.“Our maritime capabilities, the intelligence deployment of Customs officers with reference to predictable seasonal trends and the ability to act on intelligence will figure prominently in how we develop the approach to border control.”The $190,483 recovered last year almost $60,000 of it during the last three months of 2010 was taken from passengers leaving Bermuda who had not declared it.The Minister said strong relationships and cooperation between border control agencies led to the recovery of the money, as well as the seizure by the US Coast Guard last month of a Bermuda-owned vessel in Caribbean waters with $13 million of cannabis on board.Sen Burch said plans to have a coast guard for Bermuda had not advanced as swiftly as he wanted and were unlikely to due to budgetary constraints.