Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

I apologise for my late arrival in the Chamber. First, as a former public servant and as a former member of the union which is in dispute, I deeply regret what has been happening within the passport office. I believe the union has made a fundamental error. I do not make this point as a union basher as most Members who know me will know the opposite is the case. I have much time for this union and in particular for its leadership, which showed great leadership and courage during the recent referendum campaign in particular. However, I must apologise on behalf of the Department and the Government to those who have had their plans destroyed or certainly upset, as well as for the extraordinary inconvenience, suffering and frustration that has been caused by the delays in the passport service.

The second point I should make is that over its long period of operations, the passport office has been a good operation. It issues up to 600,000 passports per annum or approximately 12,000 passports per week and during peak periods, it handles approximately 20,000 passports per week. Consequently, the capacity exists and were people working to rule, it could be used to purpose.

Deputy Timmins has made a number of important propositions outside the House, for example, augmenting current staff. As he is probably aware, this would be normally the case at this time of year, but it is not currently possible. The passport service must operate to international standards, including those drawn up by international organisations such as the International Civil Aviation Organisation, ICAO, and the US Department of Homeland Security. Unfortunately, there is no room for shortcuts in the process. It must be handled in a professional way.

Since the Passport Office operates with large volumes, any curtailment of processing would soon lead to a major backlog, as we are seeing. The CPSU action has resulted in a build-up of 44,000 applications in the system. Last Friday's action was particularly regrettable, as it undoubtedly caused a considerable amount of disruption. Long delays in processing passports has resulted in a collapse of confidence in the system, a legacy with which we will all need to deal. In other countries that previously experienced a loss of confidence in their passport systems, only a return to guaranteed turnaround times restored confidence and, consequently, a lessening of pressure at public counters. The Minister and I are acutely aware that a loss of confidence will take a significant time to overcome, that frustration has been caused and that there will be an IR legacy.

The industrial relations action is slowing down the overall process. As Deputy Timmins pointed out, the CPSU has blocked the recruitment of temporary workers, which would have been normal at this time in the Passport Office. Demand for passports is seasonal, but it is 11% greater this year than it was last year. As concern has set in during recent days, a flood of passport applications into the system is adding further to the problems.

As Deputies know, there was a particular problem last Friday when the CPSU provided the Department with only very short notice of its intention to withdraw from public counter services. It was not possible to advise all callers directly as to their actions and the passport service management advised on its website when notice of the position was received on Thursday. The difficulties with the public office did not start last Friday. They had been building for a number of weeks. The Department appealed to the unions to put off their strike action last Friday. The Minister, Deputy Martin, made the same appeal last night, an appeal that I renew. It is not in the interests of the public service to be in conflict with the general public. Those who are suffering are members of the general public.

On 16 March, accommodation and sophisticated equipment in the Passport Office were destroyed. It is important to put on the record that they were destroyed by a water leak that occurred overnight despite the suggestion that they might have been destroyed otherwise. That a production unit will be out of commission is adding to the difficulties. The two remaining production units were receiving the normally scheduled preventative maintenance, work that concluded yesterday. With one unit out of action for the medium term, it was prudent to ensure the other two units received their scheduled maintenance.

The Deputies asked about the further action that can be undertaken. The Minister has asked the union to consider its position, particularly on the employment of additional personnel. The backlog will take some time to clear. It is in everyone's interests, including those of the public service unions and their relationship with the general population, to accede to the request. Suggestions have not been made just by our side of the House, but from the other side of the House as well, to curtail the action.

Having said this, I appreciate that the unions have a job to do. It is not easy for unions, particularly those representing lower paid public servants, to accept the types of restriction that recently needed to be placed on pay. However, it is a time of sacrifice across the economy. No part of the public sector system should impose additional hardships on families at this time of year. I would welcome any supplementary questions.

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