Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The crossover is there, and the fact that it is handled, but I find it very frustrating. I will skip over to the passport issue. I appreciate the information that has been provided. Every person I speak to who has gone online and received their passport has expressed surprise at how quickly it has come through. There is a reaction, especially online, at how extraordinary it is to get a passport on a Tuesday morning that was applied for perhaps on a Sunday morning while the applicant was in his or her pyjamas. We can see this reaction online.

The negative is that sometimes applications can take longer because of the volume. If a person is given a realistic projection of how long it might take he or she will not mind if it takes and extra day or two. The problem we now have, however, is that the stated processing time is up on the website in black and white, and a person may apply and be left waiting. In my experience this can happen with a lot of people who have new applications, or when a person has an expired passport. If the service gave people a realistic timeframe I believe they would be far more accepting, especially coming up to the summer when it is going to be busy.

The witness outlined the process of verification very well in his opening statement and explained that the integrity of the system must be maintained, and this is completely accepted. Is the issue about the number of staff available or is it a printer availability issue? How many printers are there to print passports across the State? Is there a requirement for more printers? Has a cost-benefit analysis been conducted on whether it would be a benefit to acquire another printer? Are the witnesses aware of the per item cost to the Exchequer of each passport application, including the staffing costs, the processing costs and the passport itself? If the Department does not know this it should.