Dáil debates

Tuesday, 16 May 2017

Topical Issue Debate

Passport Applications

7:10 pm

Photo of Declan BreathnachDeclan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise this Topical Issue. I also thank the Minister and I am pleased to see him in attendance. I compliment his Department and officials in terms of my dealings with them on many matters.

We may have express buses and express trains but we certainly do not have an express passport application process in the Department. It is a huge concern not only to my constituents but to all throughout the country who are represented in the House, so much so that since the Topical Issue was tabled today four Deputies have asked me to raise specific issues, which I will do later.

The current delay is unacceptable in the turnaround times for the issuing of passports applied for through the passport express system operated by An Post. Until last month, people were still being told by their local post offices that the turnaround time was ten working days. I have seen cases where the turnaround time extended to up to four weeks, double what people were told. I will give the example of a mother of a child with special needs, who spent more than €1,500 on a holiday for herself and the child. Her passport was out of date so she applied on 11 April through passport express. She thought she was doing the right thing because she read the small print, which stated the renewal of the passport would be expedited within ten working days. Instead, she received her passport on 9 May and missed her holiday, which was due to commence on 7 May. The travel agency would not even cover the loss because of the passport not issuing. This week, I heard of another case of a four week wait for a passport express application.

I also want to bring to the attention of the Minister a big problem with passport express applications, whereby people who experience delays and have imminent travel arrangements cannot get any joy when they apply for an urgent appointment as they are told that because they applied through passport express the application cannot be retrieved and, therefore, expedited in any way. This is something that needs to be looked at and changed. Today the Department's website states the turnaround time for a passport express application is 16 working days. For the new online application system the turnaround time is ten working days. This is another issue with which I have problem. There should not be any priority given to online applications over passport express. Most of my constituents, particularly those in rural areas, do not have adequate broadband to access the online system, but this is a Topical Issue for another day.

I am aware the Passport Office has hired more staff to deal with the influx of applications due to Brexit. Anyone who has a parent or grandparent born in Ireland is entitled to a passport. Surely people applying for an Irish passport for citizenship reasons should be on a different track, especially where there is no urgent need. Latest figures from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade show applications from the UK increased by 74% in January compared with the same time last year, and that in January this year more than 7,000 people from Northern Ireland applied for an Irish passport, which is an increase of 3,973 from the number in the same month last year. With these types of figures and the inordinate delays being experienced, the Minister has obviously not hired enough staff and he needs to look at this.

I have also brought to the attention of the Minister the need for a satellite passport office in Dundalk or another Border town to deal with the increase in applications from Northern Ireland and the UK. Exactly one year ago this week, I raised this issue with the Minister in a Topical Issue debate in the context of the European football finals.

That was pre-Brexit. It is a system that cannot cope. It is unacceptable and in my view it is not fit for purpose.

7:20 pm

Photo of Charles FlanaganCharles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I very much regret the difficulties being encountered by his constituents. It is not the first time Deputy Breathnach has raised this issue with me and I am anxious to ensure that the matters are resolved, notwithstanding current challenges.

Different turnaround times apply to applications, depending on whether the applications are to renew a passport, replace a passport that has been lost, damaged or stolen or to apply for a passport for the first time. The Deputy will be aware of the security considerations that pertain to passports and the need to implement robust anti-fraud measures, particularly in the current security environment. First-time applications, therefore, take much longer due to the security checks and issues involved.

The passport service aims to process passport express renewal applications within 15 working days. This target is in place for over a year and is communicated very clearly in all An Post promotional materials and on my Department’s website. It is also regularly communicated by me in responses to parliamentary questions and through written correspondence with Members who may have queries from time to time. The current turnaround time for renewals is 16 working days, one working day over our target turnaround time. Currently, first-time applications and applications concerning passports that have been lost, stolen or damaged take 22 working days, two working days over the target time.

Meanwhile, online renewals are being processed in ten working days plus postage time. Turnaround times are updated weekly on the passport service website. My Department also keeps An Post apprised of the situation. It is not the case that applicants are being advised of a ten day turnaround by my Department. My understanding is that this advice is not being given either by An Post. I want to be very clear that the target for renewals is 15 working days - in other words, three weeks. If there are instances of a ten-day turnaround being advised I am interested to have the details. I very much regret the difficulties as expressed by Deputy Breathnach and if he would provide me with the information as to where the advice was given on the matter of ten days I would be happy to have it examined.

While we are falling marginally behind our projected turnaround times for passport express applications, I believe the Passport Office is doing an impressive job considering the exceptionally high volumes of applications received in recent months. To date this year, over 350,000 applications have been processed compared to 500,000 in all of 2016.

My Department has taken a number of measures to handle the exceptional volumes of applications, including targeted overtime. Almost 230 temporary clerical officers have been recruited and a number of additional permanent staff have been assigned to the Passport Office. Workloads are continually reallocated between the three Passport Offices to optimise an efficient service. We will continue to keep these measures under careful review to ensure that the impact of any further increase in demand is minimised.

In general terms, it is considered best practice to apply for a new passport in plenty of time and to allow at least six weeks for a passport to be processed in case any issues arise, for example, incomplete documentation, which often arises. I strongly advise checking the remaining validity on passports before booking travel, paying particular attention to the validity of children's passports, which are shorter. My Department provides a free e-mail renewal reminder service to all passports holders and I urge Deputies to join me in promoting that service.

The Deputy raised the matter of retrieving passports mid-process which have been submitted through Passport Express. As the Deputy can imagine, asking staff to locate individual passport applications among the 70,000 or more that are being processed at any one time is time consuming and disruptive, with possible knock-on consequences for other applicants. Therefore, we only do this in limited circumstances such as illness or death of an immediate family member abroad.

Photo of Declan BreathnachDeclan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for his response. We can deal with the semantics of whether the turnaround time is ten, 15 or 16 days but, unfortunately, the reality is that it is not working for those who are in the situation I outlined. I am not criticising staff in that regard. Nobody, including the Department, should not be allowed push any of the days outward and if there are delays beyond 15 or 16 days, people should be entitled to a refund of the passport express charge. Equally, for every day subsequent to that, the Department should be penalised by a certain amount of money based on the deadline set.

People are losing out on flights to go on holiday, to which I alluded earlier. It is not the Department's fault. It can be their own fault because of delays in making the application and it is appropriate that we highlight them at this stage.

I want to make some comments I was asked to make on the issue. As of today, the appointment for first-time applications in Mount Street is taking four weeks to process. In other words, it will take until 13 June for somebody who makes an application today. We are getting into the holiday time and that needs to be highlighted again, as the Minister said.

Representations to the Minister's office are receiving, by and large, generic responses. Should there not be a contact line for the public and even for public representatives in terms of getting greater access to deal with the issue? Why are alerts only sent out when the three weeks expire, for example, if the photograph is unsuitable? Surely those could be checked separately at an early stage.

The new online service for renewals or lost passports is accepting applications and then after one or two days, a request is made for new photographs.

It is very important that we highlight what the Minister said on the issue of messaging people when their passports are close to being out of date, which is something I did not know until now. Also, modern technology should be able to highlight the expiry date on the passport. It is very visual when one opens it and it would be a strong reminder to the person that it is time to have the passport renewed.

Photo of Charles FlanaganCharles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I again acknowledge the points made by the Deputy. I undertake to have a look at the individual questions he asked and to reply to him at the earliest opportunity.

It is most important that at the outset applicants choose the most appropriate channel, and I am grateful for the assistance of Deputies in the matter of advising constituents. I ask Deputies to join me in promoting the use of the online service. The response from applicants has been extremely positive. A promotional campaign is under way which should lift the numbers further. As more applicants avail of the service, the efficiency gains will help improve the turnaround time more broadly.

The decision of the United Kingdom to leave the European Union has had an impact, as has the ongoing economic recovery, which has led to more people travelling abroad. I repeat that it is considered best practice to allow six weeks for an application in case any issue arises. Issues arise in the matter of incomplete documentation or whatever and it is vital that applicants choose the correct channel when applying.

I ask for the assistance of Deputies in this regard. The passport service clearly sets out the current turnaround times in public communications. I urge Deputies to promote the use of the free e-mail renewal reminder service provided by the Department through the website, www.dfa.ie.

I wish to pay tribute to the hard work and professionalism of the staff in the Passport Offices in Dublin, in Balbriggan and in Cork who as always have risen to the challenges. I am not saying there are not further challenges to be dealt with and I thank the Deputy for raising some issues that I will undertake to pursue.

The online passport renewal service is a major innovation and it will considerably enhance passport processing capacity. We have already seen over 21,000 online applications in the six weeks since the launch and the service looks set to handle one third of all renewals this year, well ahead of target. Given the benefits to applicants of a faster turnaround time and convenience, as well as the efficiency gains, the service should be the default for everyone eligible. I strongly urge Deputies to encourage its use.