Séamus McGrath (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for being here. At the outset, I acknowledge the great work done by the passport service and the staff. By and large, they provide a very good service. I wish to raise an issue relating to how passports are processed, and in particular, the verification with An Garda Síochána.

All in this House are aware that the Passport Office contacts Garda stations by telephone to verify that a passport has been stamped in the Garda station. I understand that is not done for every passport but, rather, is done on a selective basis. That has presented significant difficulties. As a public representative, I have come across dozens of cases where applications have been cancelled because the Passport Office has not been able to make contact with the Garda station.

We understand that Garda stations are busy places and unfortunately, the phone is often not answered. We would like to change this but it is the reality of the situation at present. Very often, these passport applications are in the system for many weeks before this happens and they are then cancelled with a short period left for the individuals' or the families' travel requirements. What has sparked me to raise this issue is a case I recently came across where it happened twice in the context of the same application. The application for a new passport for one of the children in the family was cancelled for the second time only a week before travelling for a family holiday. I think we would all agree that this is not an acceptable situation and there is a very obvious solution to this. The system of phoning a Garda station is clearly archaic, inefficient and outdated. It needs to be changed urgently, as part of this process. I am not suggesting anything radical but I suggest that we change it to an email system. This would be far more efficient. It would provide a clear, written record of the communication between the Passport Office and the Garda stations and it would give gardaí the opportunity to come back within a day or so to the Passport Office. It would be a far better and more efficient system of verification, I would argue. I ask the Minister to take this issue back to the Department, to make this change. It would avoid families having the significant stress and anxiety of passport applications being cancelled with a short period left to rectify the situation before they travel. As in all other cases, the applicants in this particular case did nothing wrong. The family went to the district Garda HQ and they did everything they could to have their passport in the best shape possible but unfortunately, this issue arose. As I have said, I have come across this numerous times over the years and it finally needs to be addressed. Verbal communication is open to misinterpretation, miscommunication and so on. It is important that there is a clear record of the communication of the verification. We can debate in the House whether it is necessary for gardaí to verify a passport application but that is a debate for another day. I think that needs to be looked at as well but that can be reviewed at another point. For now, it is important that the system is updated and brought into the 21st century so that we do not have families going through this unnecessary anxiety and stress when trying to get a passport application completed.

Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as an ábhar seo a ardú. I thank Deputy McGrath for raising the matter. Like the Deputy I want to pay tribute to the staff in the Passport Office and to acknowledge the work that they do. The passport service is currently experiencing a high level of demand for passports, as citizens prepare for upcoming summer travel. The Department of Foreign Affairs has operational and staffing plans in place and the Passport Office is successfully responding to the current level of demand, and has issued almost 200,000 passports to date this year. Virtually all complete passport applications are being processed within or before advertised turnaround times. The Irish passport has a strong international reputation and currently ranks third in the Henley global passport index, as it provides our citizens with visa-free access to 189 countries. As such, the passport service takes its responsibility to protect the integrity of the Irish passport very seriously. Since the introduction of online passport applications in 2017, adults renewing their passports through the Passport Office online are not required to submit a witnessed identity form. Online child renewal applications can be witnessed by members of a wide range of professions, including school teachers, doctors, elected representatives and gardaí. Deputy McGrath raised the issue of the application that was cancelled twice. I will bring that back to the Department. The Deputy raised a very important point that many families are genuinely frustrated and worried, despite their organisational abilities. There are certain passport applications for applicants resident in Ireland that require forms to be witnessed by a member of An Garda Síochána. These include: all passport applications sent by post; first-time adult online applications and first-time child online applications. The witnessing of these forms is an important element of the identity verification process for the passport service, as it provides initial assurance that the person in the photograph is the same person presenting to submit the passport application form.

In the case of an application for a minor, the witnessing of this form provides evidence that guardians have given their consent for a passport to be issued to the child. In order to protect the rights of parents or guardians and children, it is important that forms are correctly completed. As I mentioned previously, it is important to note that not all children’s passport applications must be witnessed by a garda. Child online renewal applications can be witnessed by a range of professions. When a garda does witness an application, it is the responsibility of the garda to ensure that the signature is correctly recorded in the logbook, so that when the passport service calls, the signature can be verified.

In the limited category of applications that require a garda witness, the passport service calls the relevant Garda station to confirm that the garda recorded the form in the station logbook. There is no requirement for the passport service to speak to the witnessing garda directly. Passport service staff will call the Garda station up to three times to verify the garda's signature. Where the passport service cannot reach the Garda station after three attempts, there is a system in place whereby the relevant superintendent’s office can be contacted to verify the details. If the passport service is unable to verify the witness after these steps have been taken, a new witnessed form will be requested from the applicant. Deputy McGrath made reference to the 21st century and the passport service is continuously looking at ways to make the application process easier for applicants, including the enhancement of digital services. The Department of Foreign Affairs would welcome the digitisation of the records maintained by An Garda Síochána when witnessing applications.

The policy on the use of witnesses is currently under review, as part of a general update of passport service policies. The witnessing policy is also being reviewed in the context of the ongoing programme of passport service reform. This reform programme focuses on the future of service delivery by implementing projects that enhance the customer experience while maintaining the integrity of the Irish passport. Elements of the reform programme being rolled out later this year and early next year, will introduce updates to the witnessing process, which will further enhance the service for customers. I will bring back the Deputy's remarks to the Department, because they are valid. All of us here who have experienced passport issues know how frustrating it can be.

Séamus McGrath (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State. I welcome the fact that the process is under review and that it is being considered in the wider context. The Minister of State mentioned that 200,000 applications are being processed per annum, which is a huge volume. I acknowledge the great work done by the staff of the passport service. We all value our Irish passport. It is our most important document in many respects. The process of verification needs to be reviewed. The Minister of State's response outlined that there are three attempts made to try to contact the Garda station. That is the case but unfortunately, Garda stations are extremely busy places. We know An Garda Síochána is underresourced. It does not have the manpower in place. An email system would be a far more efficient service. I have discussed this with members and management of An Garda Síochána. They seem to be in favour of an email system being put in place. A review is under way. I thank the Minister of State for taking on board my points. Hopefully, the review will result in a more modern and efficient system, which would prevent families from suffering unnecessary stress, anxiety and heartache. In the particular case I referred to, the family got the passport within hours of their travel. That is not acceptable when the family had applied in good time, a number of months beforehand. They used the online system and they did everything as they should have but unfortunately, the system let them down. That needs to change. I thank the Minister of State for taking my comments on board.

Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy again for raising this important issue. As we all know in this Chamber, passports are an important topic for us in our offices, especially as we approach the Easter and summer holidays. I assure Members of the commitment of the passport service and which I think we all agree is an excellent service. It is in an excellent position to deliver the demand forecasted for the rest of the year. Last week alone, 35,000 passports were issued, which is a staggering amount. In the context of the Deputy's comments, the passport service maintains a very close working relationship with An Garda Síochána. It offers guidance to gardaí on the correct completions required for identity and consent forms. It is important to recognise that the Passport Office will continue this engagement to discuss how we can work together to improve the situation and the service for citizens. I will bring back to the Department the Deputy's point regarding digitisation and the email system.

In addition, we should all take to our social media channels to urge anyone travelling overseas this year, especially families with young children, to check the validity of their passport before booking travel and to apply online in plenty of time and not wait until the last minute. We are all probably guilty of that as citizens and people.

Online passport renewal applications do not require a Garda signature for adults and children. Passport online is the best option for all our citizens. It is the quickest, most convenient and most cost-effective way to apply for a passport.

I thank the Passport Office and the Passport Office staff for the work they do on our behalf. They have a very good system. A couple tweaks could perhaps be made but we are very well served by them.

I will bring back the comments Deputy McGrath made to the Minister, Deputy Harris.