Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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I have listened to Senator Gallagher expressing his frustration about the failure of the recovery to have an impact on parts of rural Ireland, including County Monaghan. I am conscious that two days after the Brexit vote, a passport office in Belfast ran out of passport forms and had to place an emergency order for more forms. According to figures we have been given, 46,257 passport applications were received from the North between January 2016 and July 2016. This represented an increase of 18.85% on the figure for the same period in the previous year. As people start to appreciate the reality of the impact that Brexit and its implications will have for them, it is generally accepted that there will be an increase in applications for Irish passports. In July 2016, there were 6,638 applications for Irish passports. This represented an increase of 63.1% on the July 2015 figure.

It has been mentioned that there are passport offices in Dublin and Cork. I am based in Dublin. I encounter the same issues as other elected representatives even though there is a passport office in Dublin. Huge difficulties can arise when people need to get passports at the last minute. I have heard what others have said about how difficult it is to help people in the North to enfranchise their rights from that location. It could be argued that an office should be located in Belfast as the second largest city on the island. I do not mean to detract from Senator Gallagher's idea when I say that. I recently spoke to an elected representative from Donegal who said it would not be unusual for him to have to try to deal with 100 passports. The difficulty is that the removal of the passport facility which Deputies used to enjoy is making things awkward. Members of the committee know from their own experience that demands are placed on elected representatives in respect of passports. I do not think the idea that an office could be located in Belfast takes away from Senator Gallagher's suggestion.

It has been identified that there is a difficulty in this regard. My argument is that there is a clear need for an office in Belfast or Derry. I have no difficulty with Senator Gallagher's proposal. My genuine belief, based on all the indications we are receiving, is that demand is going to grow in the North. We need to plan for that possibility. It would make it easier for people if a passport office were located in one of the locations we have mentioned. I know from talking to people that even though there is an office in London, there is a demand for a similar service in Liverpool, Newcastle and other cities with large first-generation or second-generation Irish communities. People in the third generation, whose grandparents moved to Britain from Ireland, also have an entitlement in this area. We need to look outside the box. I think Senator Gallagher's proposal is helping us to do that. I suggest that as part of any proposal, we should look at locating a passport office in Belfast.