Mr. Niall Burgess:

I thank the Committee of Public Accounts for inviting me to assist it in its consideration of the 2016 appropriation accounts for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade - Votes 27 and 28 - and Chapter 14 of the Comptroller and Auditor General’s 2016 report on the control of Ireland's bilateral assistance programme. As the Chairman mentioned, I am joined by some colleagues from the Department who may be helpful to the committee: Ms Fiona Penollar, who is our director of passport services; Ms Barbara Cullinane, who is our head of strategy and performance; Mr. Ruairí de Búrca, who is the head of Irish Aid, Ms Caitríona Ingoldsby, who is the head of our Irish abroad unit; and Mr. Austin Gormley, who is the head of our corporate services division. I know the committee has been supplied with material which provides a factual summary of the main areas of departmental expenditure and receipts in 2016. I do not propose to repeat that orally. The programme structure for Vote 28 corresponds with the Department's strategy statement, which sets out its work in five priority areas: providing a service to Irish citizens, engaging actively in the European Union, promoting our values internationally, advancing our prosperity and strengthening our influence. Vote 27 is structured around a single expenditure programme based on poverty and hunger reduction.

We have been building strength around a cluster of issues which are disproportionately important to longer-term development. We have done this while keeping the most vulnerable people in mind at all times. Some of the most important issues in this context are access to education and health opportunities for women and girls, support to civil society, social support for the most vulnerable people, good governance, small-scale agriculture and childhood nutrition. The humanitarian challenges arising from conflict, political instability and climate change have reached unprecedented levels in Syria, Yemen, Myanmar, South Sudan, the Horn of Africa, southern Africa and northern Nigeria. It is estimated 3 million people were forced to leave their homes as a result of conflict and persecution in 2017, bringing the number of refugees and displaced people to an all-time high of 68 million. Against this background, we have directed new funding to more recent crises while maintaining a visibility and influence beyond our size, especially in refugee-hosting countries such as Uganda, Ethiopia and Tanzania. It is against this background of change and challenge that the Government has committed to publishing a White Paper on Ireland's international development co-operation programme that will guide progress towards meeting the target of allocating 0.7% of gross national income to overseas development assistance by 2030. I acknowledge the work of Members of the Oireachtas in compiling a report on Irish Aid earlier this year. This useful report is informing our thinking as this work is brought forward.

I want to address an issue which is topical for most if not all offices in the Oireachtas. I refer to the impact that the unprecedented demand for passports is having on the delivery of passport services to the public. Responsive public service is the bedrock of this Department's work. This can take the form of support for emigrant communities, consular care for Irish citizens abroad or the delivery of passports. We aim for continuous improvement in our service on the one hand, and easier access to services for our citizens on the other. Everything else is built on this foundation. I say this as someone who spent some of the most satisfying years of my career living and working with Irish communities abroad. For some years now, we have been working towards a thorough overhaul and renewal of the passport system aimed at providing a better, more responsive and more accessible service. The Irish passport card was a significant innovation and the first of its type. This facility for our citizens is unmatched by other countries. Our passport booklet is rated among the four most advanced and secure in the world. This is one of the reasons Irish citizens need so few visas for international travel, including to the US. The ongoing development of our online service allows citizens to apply from home and receive their passports in a matter of days. This goes hand in hand with robust procedures to verify and protect the identities of applicants.

As we take pride in what we do, it is a matter of immense frustration for us that some categories of passport application are taking longer to process than we had planned, that we are unable to answer all telephone calls to the Passport Office and that many people are concerned they will not receive their passports in time for their travel plans. I see the efforts being made by my colleagues in the Passport Office to get us back on target. I also see their immense grace under pressure as they answer telephone calls and deal with callers to the office. Our responsibility to verify and protect the identities of the citizens involved and ensure the integrity and international reputation of the Irish passport means that lost and stolen passports and first-time applications take longer. If one calls the Passport Office, however, one should get an answer. If we are frustrated at what we cannot do, our customers are even more so. The telephone service is not what it should be at present and I apologise for that.

It important to provide reassurance that the service is working well for the most part. All applications processed online are issued within days. For those using this channel, the service from the Passport Office has improved immeasurably over the past 12 months. All renewals are being issued on time. This improvement on last year has been achieved even though the past six months have been the busiest in our history, with our activity having increased by 8.5% since last year. Most queries are being answered, with approximately 9,500 queries being answered in the past week. Processing times are in line with international norms and are coming down. I believe we will meet all our targets by next month. In the meantime, nobody affected by these delays who is at risk of missing a travel deadline has been turned away. In the short term, probably before the end of this year, child renewals will go online. This will reduce waiting times and extend the benefits of the new system to more families. This would not be possible without the support of the members of this committee and their colleagues across the Oireachtas who have helped us to get clear information to applicants, who have guided them through the process and who have brought urgent cases to our attention. I acknowledge this assistance and thank Deputies and Senators for it.

Votes 27 and 28 support a great diversity of work undertaken on behalf of the State and its citizens. I have referred to the commitment of our colleagues in the Passport Office. I see that commitment across the mission network, which itself comprises great diversity. I was delighted to attend yesterday's launch by the Tánaiste of the Department’s LGBT+ staff network, which is the first such network in the Civil Service. This complements the considerable amount of work that is already under way to advance gender equality in the Department. This initiative is part of an agenda that seeks to foster a culture of respect and equality to the benefit of staff, of the Department and, ultimately, of those we serve. Across its offices in Ireland and its missions overseas, the Department has staff members of approximately 70 nationalities. They speak 40 languages and work in 90 locations worldwide to support Irish citizens and represent Ireland's voice and interests on the international stage. My colleagues and I are ready to respond to any questions that may be posed by the members of the committee on additional issues across our Votes.