Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I will address the questions thematically rather than in the order they were asked.

With regard to Deputy Smith's question, of the 630,000 passports issued last year, approximately 40,000 were issued through missions abroad. Approximately 40,000 were issued in London and a further 40,000 were issued in Northern Ireland.

Some 90% of applications are now coming through the passport express service. The objective is to have passports issued within ten working days through the passport express process. Currently, the timeframe is six to seven days. That is probably a seasonal figure because demand is not as high this time of the year. In the past, including last year, there were periods when it took 11 to 12 days during the peak season. The objective is to have passports issued within ten days and this is largely being met.

One area we are examining at present, and to which I ask the committee to give some thought, concerns the circumstances of somebody who needs a passport in a hurry. There are a number of arrangements in place in this regard. Where there is a death or family tragedy and a family member’s passport is out of date, there is an arrangement whereby a passport can be issued in a hurry. Consider, however, the circumstances that often arise in which a family going on holiday discovers on a Saturday morning or Friday evening that the passport of one family member is out of date. I have much sympathy for those in such circumstances. It presents a difficulty in that there is not an immediate emergency. We have been giving some consideration to how we might deal with this. Two difficulties arise for the passport service. First, if one prioritises such cases, it means those queuing by normal means are pushed back a bit. The second consequence concerns staffing and the associated costs. One measure we are considering is having a system whereby, if somebody is in the circumstances described, there would be an emergency service with an additional charge. It would be helpful if the committee were to give some thought to this. Let us have the benefit of the committee's views.

It is probably fair to say the demand for consular services changes. Our experience is that the biggest demand is in holiday destinations. Spain comes to mind very quickly as a country in which there is quite a demand for consular assistance. It is mainly tourists who are involved, and to some extent new emigrants, particularly in very tragic cases.

Our consular service has a very good reputation. Cases vary. There was a recent very high-profile case involving a young Irish citizen arrested on drug charges in South America. We had to arrange for an officer from our embassy in Mexico to travel to the location in question because we do not have a resident mission there. Some cases arise where there are deaths and the remains need to be repatriated. We provide assistance in that area. In many cases, people get into trouble, for one reason or another, with the law in a particular country. Our embassies work with the families concerned to ensure they have legal representation and know their rights in the country in question. Some cases involve the visiting of Irish people who are incarcerated abroad. A broad range of circumstances is covered. We are very grateful for the work of our honorary consuls, as has been mentioned.

We are currently conducting a review of the honorary consul network. Work on that review began towards the end of 2012. There has already been wide-ranging consultation involving the Department, State agencies, our missions and the honorary consuls. A draft report was submitted to my Department's management advisory committee for consideration. Consequent to this, a list of draft recommendations has been compiled. The review covers a number of key areas, including the extent of the network, possible expansion, the range of work covered by honorary consuls and the possible expansion of that role, training and resources, and financial considerations. One likely outcome of the review is guidelines on the expansion of the role of honorary consul to ensure far greater involvement in trade promotion. Once the review has been completed and recommendations are agreed, the consular division will work on implementing those recommendations in conjunction with the relevant divisions and agencies.

Deputy Durkan asked about Irish communities overseas. On the emigrant support programme, almost €6.2 million, 57% of the total, was disbursed to 110 organisations in Britain. Key recipients included the London Irish Centre, the Irish in Britain - formerly known as the Federation of Irish Societies - and Irish Community Care Merseyside. In the United States, some €1.6 million was provided to 27 organisations, the largest single recipients being the Irish International Immigrant Center in Boston, the Emerald Isle Immigration Center in New York and the Chicago Irish Immigrant Support organisation. Almost €2 million was provided to 12 organisations in Ireland, including Crosscare Migrant Project, which helps prepare Irish emigrants for life overseas as well as returning Irish emigrants. Funding is also provided for the Safe Home Programme and the Irish Council for Prisoners Overseas. The GAA also received €921,000, which included €600,000 for the redevelopment of facilities at the GAA headquarters in Ruislip in London.

In response to Deputy Eric Byrne, following on from the Global Irish Economic Forum in October we are conducting a review of our diaspora policy. That is under way and due to be completed by the middle of the year. I believe that covers all the questions.