Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)

We have a direct connection with South America of which we have not made the most. We should do so. If that means offering a limited passport or some other manner of recognising Irish heritage, so be it.

This legislation reminds me of another Bill on which I spoke, not the last time I was elected to the Dáil but the time before that. It was introduced by former Deputy Mervyn Taylor and, similarly to this Bill, was considered lightweight but it had a significant impact on how we gather information. The Bill was one page long and proposed to extend the amount of information included in birth certificates. Therefore, it has a connection with this Bill. Up to that time, only the profession of the baby's father was listed on the birth certificate, but after the Bill was enacted, the mother's profession — home-maker or seamstress etc — was also listed. This gave us an insight into social history which was not previously available to us. A small Bill such as the one we are considering often has a far more significant impact on the State than is perceived at the time.

As I mentioned, the notion that we are only now putting the issuing of passports on a statutory basis is staggering. Passports are now being used far more internally than for international passage. In the matter of using passports as a form of identification, I differ from the previous speaker. In particular, young people must often use identification when entering nightclubs and bars, but in these places there is a significant risk that a passport will be either mislaid or stolen. I agree we should consider introducing a national identification scheme, but this identification should not be in the form of a passport because a passport is too valuable a document. The value of the Irish passport can be seen from the fact that Oliver North travelled with one during the Iran-Contra affair. He knew that an American passport would not get him safely into certain countries but an Irish passport which was widely respected would.

The idea that someone would apply for a passport because he or she needs identification for all sorts of purposes is outrageous and should not be allowed. Young people have no choice other than to use the passport because every other document is considered suspect and inadequate.

We need to introduce a national identification scheme, where people want to apply for it. I admit I would not go along with it being compulsory but if people need to apply for a card as a means of identification, it should be available to them. We should ensure our passports are kept as safely as possible rather than having people use them as a means of identification when they go out at night. Thankfully, I no longer need such identification, but one would not know. Passports are sought in opening bank accounts and in opening utility accounts and here again a national identification scheme would be a far better way of doing so rather than having to take out the passport.

There are pros and cons to children having their own passports. A mother is always nervous that someone will decide to take a shine to her child and take him or her off. Mothers find that having their children attached to their passport gives them a degree of control and safety, but I understand perfectly why it is a better idea to have a child's individual passport. We must be very careful about these matters. We are not living in the type of world in which we all grew up. It is a much more dangerous world and there are people who are much more deceitful and cunning than it appears people were in the past.

The previous speaker dealt with the issue of change of gender. It is a good idea, if one is to deal with passports and other documents of a life-long nature — even though one must change it every ten or maybe five years, nevertheless it does define one for life — and one's life changes dramatically through choice, then one should have the ability to change that detail in such an important document. It is important that such a provision would be inserted. I am sure that in the future there will be other changes as well but at least we will have the legislation to amend.

The passport office in Cork is second to none. My experience is like that of others who spoke here. For instance, one Christmas morning people who were flying out the day after St. Stephen's Day came and the passport office staff were available to do their very best. The amount of people who do not check their passport expiry date is astonishing. The passport office responds and the response is the same to everyone, and that is important. There are no judgment calls. The staff simply do their job to an efficient standard and I really could not praise them enough. It seems incredible that they can respond in such a fashion and give the information necessary to people who sometimes are quite distraught about the notion of it because they think back to the good old days when one had to wait up to a month to get a passport. Now the passport office responds immediately and the staff are very good in gathering the necessary information.

The passport system in Ireland and the issuing of passports has not always been as clearcut and defined as it is nowadays. I still have a vision of a former Minister for Justice going to the Shelbourne Hotel with a bunch of passports to foreign businessmen. No matter what was the investment potential, people who come here to invest their money for the long haul and put down roots should have to apply for a passport the same as the rest of us and their application should be treated favourably. I am staggered by the notion that it could happen that one would issue a passport to people because they were investing money and had no intention of living here or had no commitment to the country, and that those passports would be delivered by a senior Minister, and it did happen. I am glad that we have a framework in place whereby that type of event would never happen. I hope we will never see its like again because that devalues the passport for all of us.

When I go abroad and use my passport I know it does not entitle me to entry to the country I am approaching but simply defines me as an Irish citizen and if something goes wrong, then the Irish Government has an interest in me. The fact that the passport is a document which is not only valuable, but is respected and issued in a particular way and is not open to being purchased, gives it a value to me that is beyond anything for which I could ask. It is about the Government having an interest in me as a citizen and if anything should go wrong, then it will state that interest clearly. That is the purpose of one's passport. That is why we should not allow it be devalued by being used as a method of identification for the most spurious of reasons and we should ensure that does not happen again.

I am glad to see provision in the legislation for penalties for people who abuse it, by using it falsely, by using a false passport, by stealing it etc. I assume the reason the Columbia three were never charged was because there was no provision in legislation at the time. That matter should be clarified because most people ask why they were not charged. It was obviously because there was no offence. It is handy to have that provision in place for all of us, not just people who have offended in the past but anyone who would find himself or herself in that position. I am glad that provision is included. I am glad we are at long last putting the issuing of passports on a statutory footing. I am also glad it is down to a particular Minister whether or not a passport can be issued and the reasons it cannot be issued must be made clear as well. There will be cases where a passport will be refused and we must put in place a clear passage of appeal. That must happen because mistakes will be made — it is the nature of things. We need to put a clear appeals system in place for no other reason than that people will get the exact reason they were refused and if it is wrong in any of its detail, they will be able to appeal the decision.

Just like the legislation that Mervyn Taylor, the former Minister for Equality and Law Reform, introduced in respect of stating what was the occupation of a mother, this legislation will be far more significant in years to come than it appears to be. It is good legislation. I am sure there will be bits and pieces to discuss on Committee Stage but, nevertheless it is welcome legislation which I hope will make us all sit up, take notice and appreciate the value of our passport.

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