Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We all wish we did not have to have this debate. I am sure the Minister wishes we were not having it. I imagine his constituency office is the same as mine and is inundated. A hold needs to be taken of the information people are getting. I will use an example to illustrate what I mean because this is what is making people so frustrated.

A first-time application went in originally on 21 January. There was back and forth in relation to the documentation, which is fair enough. On 1 April, a message came to say that the office had received the supporting documents and was verifying them. On 21 April another message was received saying that the application was being processed. I read that as meaning that the documents had been verified and had gone to the next stage. The applicant heard nothing, despite repeated attempts at contact - up to 100 times a day was not unusual. On 18 May, an email was received saying that the Passport Office could not contact the Garda station and the applicant would have to resubmit, even though the applicant had been told that the documentation had moved to the next stage. This is what is driving people mad. Their documentation was good enough originally but it has been in the system for so long that it has to be resubmitted. This is a passport application for a child who is due to travel on 4 June but the estimated issue date now is some time at the end of June. When I say every effort has been made, we could not name between us an effort that has not been made in this case. It is deeply frustrating to do everything right, to understand, as this applicant did, that the system would be under pressure and to do everything right and still to find oneself in a situation where one is unsure as to whether one will get the passport. At this stage, the applicant is starting to give up. There will be no refund on the holiday which means there will be no holiday. A holiday is important but it is not just holidays that are being affected, as the Minister knows. People are hoping to travel to see family, including kids who have not seen their grandparents because of Covid. These are really serious human cases.

A suggestion was made here a number of weeks ago by Deputy Denis Naughten that the Passport Office could use post offices as a clearing house or a first line for document checking. I ask the Minister to look at that, along with any other suggestions that have been made. It strikes me that the one from Deputy Naughten is a good one. I would also like to support my colleague's call for some form of advertising to be done by airlines, ferry companies and travel agents asking people if they have their passports before they make a booking.

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