Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his response. That last paragraph is important, because it emphasises that "the Passport Service will continue to consider ways in which to enhance the customer experience for citizens". I reiterate and re-emphasise that someone in the north west will have to travel the night before an appointment and pay substantial costs for hotel accommodation. Those people will be out a lot of money in that regard, in addition to the €150 cost of the emergency passport itself. I spoke to the Minister, Deputy Coveney, this morning before I came in. I really do hope a meeting with officials and the Minister will happen quickly.

Turning to some general points about the current system, communication is key. We need a better early warning system. I refer to situations where people might be applying for passports for their children in January or February, perhaps. This could be similar to the case of a gentleman who rang me yesterday. He has got back passports for three of his children, but he has not got any information on whether there is going to be a problem. The flights in question are on 6 June and the due date is 8 June. That man wishes to know if there is something he can be doing in this regard. Therefore, we need better communication. We need better messaging as well. I know the Department and the Passport Office are trying to get people to access the online system rather than the paper-based one. They are trying to get away from that latter approach, but we still advertise the availability of paper-based applications as "Passport Express". Using that label straightaway gives the message that the response will happen quickly, but that might not prove to be the case.

We talk about the peace dividend as well. Equally, we talk about the protocol and its benefits to citizens. Talk is talk, though, and action is action. People will have to start seeing more things happening on the ground. An example would be those people who have travelled down last week, this week and every week on the A5, which is still not a dual carriageway. If we are going to be saying to the citizens of Donegal, Tyrone, Derry, or even further afield into Fermanagh and Sligo and all these surrounding counties, that we are going to provide a service equal to the service that people in Kerry, Limerick, Cork or Dublin and its wider environs get, then they must see action on this dividend. Iarraim ar an Aire Stáit a shúile agus a intinn a choinneáil oscailte.

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