Dáil debates

Wednesday, 18 May 2022

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate

Passport Services

9:52 am

Photo of Ossian SmythOssian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy made several points. He suggested there should be a better early warning system if there are errors with a passport application and the date is not going to be met. I will communicate this point to the Passport Office. Deputy McHugh also pointed out that "Passport Express" might be the wrong name if the other method is in fact the express method and that perhaps we should examine this aspect. It was, however, the faster method of securing a passport when it was introduced, but we may look at the branding of that now, given we have the online system in place. There is clearly a difference. All of us in the House are very familiar with queries about passport applications, and especially since the onset of the pandemic. We have all done a great deal of that kind of work and a lot of representing our constituents in such cases. We understand, for example, that new passport applications take much longer than renewals. People have told me they have applied to renew their passport at lunchtime and then received it the next morning. They are delighted with that outcome. On the other hand, an application for a new passport can take a long time to deliver. The Deputy is especially emphasising the need for good communication and that we ensure that when an issue does occur that we let people know about it. We have clearly got a large cohort of new passport holders from Northern Ireland. We are distributing passports to them through post offices in the North.

We are getting many new citizens from both sides of the community, who are welcome. The system is under massive pressure because there were two years in which people did not renew their passports. That constitutes 20% of the population that did not renew their passports, meaning 1 million passports are required. That backlog is being worked through with a large number of people being hired.

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