Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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243. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his Department’s attention has been drawn to public comments in Britain in relation to the issue of Irish passports (details supplied); if he will clarify the veracity of same; the number of passports issued; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56017/22]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Passport Service is unable to provide the number of Irish passports held by individuals referenced by the Deputy as the profession of applicants is not captured as part of the application process. The Passport Service does not compile statistics according to the elected status of an applicant.

The number of passport applications from applicants residing in Great Britain in the years 2016 to date are outlined as follows in tabular form. This table also outlines the number of applications from applicants living in Northern Ireland. The majority of these applications were processed in the Passport Offices in Ireland. A relatively small number of applications such as some counter appointments and emergency passports are processed in the Irish Passport Office in London.