Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and Minister of State for attending the committee. As the Minister said, there has been a significant 9% increase in applications for Irish passports totalling 733,000. I also wish to compliment everyone associated with customer services for their work in the Passport Office. I have had many difficult cases at times and the passport staff have always been helpful and supportive. I wanted to put that on the record.

The Minister also mentioned an increase of 20% in applications this year already. Is that as a result of the Brexit vote concerning Northern Ireland? What is the percentage breakdown of new passport applications from Northern Ireland and Britain so far this year?

Representing a Border constituency, my concern is about the effect of Brexit. We must ensure the continuance of the Good Friday Agreement. Is Government funding in place to ensure that Brexit will not have a negative effect? We are talking about hard or soft borders, but nobody knows what the situation will be. Can the Minister expand on that?