Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Most of the workload coming in to most Deputies' offices in recent weeks has comprised queries about passports. I thank the staff of both the Passport Service and the Department of Foreign Affairs for trying to deal with the applications. The aspects that are amiss are at a management level. There needs to be a better communication structure to deal with applications, as virtually every Deputy has noted. When somebody calls the office, the phone should be answered within ten or 15 minutes. People should not have to ring multiple times. If we can get that right, it will help people because if they know they cannot get a passport in time, they can do something about that. The great anxiety and worry for people relates to not knowing what is happening. They have to rely on the tracker and will get an email, perhaps two days or even one day before the passport is due, stating there is a problem with their application, and that is what is creating the problems. That 500,000 passports have been issued this year demonstrates what has been put through the system, and 5,000 per day is no mean achievement. Nevertheless, we need better communication.

I come from the west of Ireland and represent Galway East and it always annoys me that we do not have a passport office in the west. There is a passport office in Dublin and in Cork, and to hell with the rest of the country. There is a huge population in the west, and it is high time it was recognised that we are citizens equal to everybody else. I ask the Minister of State to relay to the Department of Foreign Affairs that it is high time a passport office was set up in Galway in order that if we want to get an emergency passport, we will not have to travel to Dublin or Cork but can get it in Galway. Similarly, if somebody wanted to walk in with information or documents, he or she would have a place to put them and somebody to talk to. It is a simple ask. One Deputy stated they wanted one in the North. I think we should start in the Twenty-six Counties, serve the country properly first and put one in the west. It is important we do that.

I get a lot of queries from people intending to travel to the UK. This is an issue the Government might take up with Mr. O'Leary of Ryanair. There is a common travel area between the UK and Ireland. The only airline, as I understand it, that looks for a passport as a form of identification is Ryanair. Perhaps Mr. O'Leary should use some of the common sense he professes to have, remove that requirement and line up with every other airline, including Aer Lingus, all of which accept other forms of identification. That, in itself, would release at least some of the pressure for people.

There is, indeed, an onus on everybody to ensure his or her passport is in date, but there is an onus on the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Passport Service to put in place a serious campaign to ensure people will check their passport before they book a flight, except for emergencies. We have to get out the message that indicative processing times are indicative only, and that if something is wrong with the application or the documentation, that will delay it further. That message is not getting out. It is important we seek solutions. If the Ryanair issue is sorted out, many of the problems affecting people travelling to the UK and within the common travel area will have been solved. If we resolve the communications issue for people submitting applications and if we set up an office in Galway to serve the west, that will help get the communication right. Everybody working in the Passport Service has done Trojan work over recent years. We are going to get many more queries as Deputies, which we must foist back onto the Passport Service. That is doing nothing but leading to more people having to answer more questions.

I thank the Minister of State for hearing me out and hope he will take my suggestions into account.

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