Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Like every Deputy’s office, my office has been inundated with calls and emails in regard to passports. As we know, there is a serious backlog in the passport application process but there are further problems that have not been addressed. The online application system is welcome and 90% of people are applying online. However, the system is indicating dates of arrival of people’s passports but the passports tend not to arrive for weeks after the date specified on the link. Many people have missed holidays as the date could be two weeks out. I tell people to check their dates and they believe they will have it the next week, but they then come back to me to say that while they were to have it on, say, 16 May, it has not come and they are going on holidays the following week. I understand that the dates are an estimated timeframe but it is a concern. Although I have not had many such cases, I have definitely had a few. The concern is that we allow people to get their hopes up that they will get the passport. They are disheartened because it has not arrived on time and I have to tell them it has not been processed or printed. That needs to be addressed.

People are finding it extremely difficult to make contact with the Passport Office due to busy phone lines. We have to be mindful of the staff. I am sure they are working extremely hard, answering phone calls and looking up information when people ring. However, when I ring, I sometimes get conflicting information about a passport and I can be told one thing today and another thing tomorrow. We have to be mindful of that.

The biggest issue for me is the requirement for further information. We speak about an eight-week timeframe after the information has gone in but further information can be requested after six weeks, although it might be something simple. I ask that, when somebody applies, all of the information is looked at within a few days or a certain timeframe, and if the information is not right on the application, further information can be requested. I am very mindful of this issue because I and my staff members can be on the phone trying to find out exactly what is happening.

We have to be mindful of GDPR. I recently had to ring the normal Oireachtas line. I told the lady dealing with the call that it was an emergency as it was for a student’s school trip. While the lady could not have been nicer, she said she was sorry but she could not give me the information under GDPR. I told her that I could answer any questions she might have because the student’s mother had given me all the details. While I understand we have to be mindful of GDPR, in particular with regard to children's passports, we are in a situation where many people are looking for a break or students are looking to go away.

I have been saying for months to the Minister, Deputy Coveney, that this was expected. I firmly believe this is not something that happened overnight and it has been going on for months. Every time the Minister is in the House on the issue of passports, I will come in. Whether I get a speaking slot or not, I will wait until it comes up and I will come in and say to the Minister that we have huge issues with passports. Again, I am not blaming the staff and I think they are doing the job to the best of their ability. However, there is a lack of staff and a lack of walk-in services. Can people go and walk in? No. I accept people can get an emergency passport and I have dealt with a few cases in regard to deaths or where people had to go for an operation. The system for emergency passports is working well. I compliment the staff because emergency passports are being dealt with very well.

I had a case two weeks ago where half of the family went on holidays and the other half could not because two of the kids did not have their passports. I felt so sorry for them.

I have had other cases where people thought they were going on holiday only to find, all of a sudden, that they could not do so because their passport would not be ready on time, which left them at the loss of the money paid for the holiday. At this point in time, people really need a break. Is there any way, even for the next few months, to find solutions that will sort out these issues? I do not expect the current delays will continue to arise on an ongoing basis, but we are coming out of a period, because of the Covid crisis, in which people could not go anywhere for two years. It was great that some of them holidayed in Ireland during the periods when restrictions were not in place. At this point, however, I am seeing people, including students, who are disappointed because they cannot go abroad.

The passports for the two students I mentioned in recent days are being printed today and will be picked up at 11 a.m. tomorrow morning. There are good stories and I do not want to be just harping on about the people who have not got their passports. It is very hard for those who think they will get their passport in time and who may end up losing money. We need to try to find an easier solution, not only for the families and children who are in difficulty but also for the staff of the Passport Office, who could not be nicer or more obliging when one deals with them on the telephone. They can only do the best they can within the system that is there. As I have said to the Minister, Deputy Coveney, the system is broken. We need to fix it or get a new one that works.

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