Written Answers Nos. 968-982
975. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will introduce a direct line for gardaí to contact the Passport Office to verify passport information in cases where calls are missed. [40842/22]
View answerThere are certain passport applications for applicants resident in Ireland that require forms to be witnessed by a member of An Garda Síochána. The witnessing of these forms is a vital 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 children's applications, it ensures that the consent of guardians is verified.
Garda stations maintain logs of these witnessed forms for verification purposes. For each application involving a Garda witness, the Passport Service calls the relevant Garda station to confirm that the Garda witness recorded the witnessed form in the station logbook. Passport Service staff will call the relevant Garda station up to three times to verify the Garda's signature.
In cases where the Garda signature cannot be verified by calling the Garda station, a new system has been established between the Passport Service and An Garda Síochána to verify these applications. A daily list of an average of 15 applications is sent from the Passport Service to An Garda Síochána, who undertake to verify the witnessed forms. This new system assists in reducing the number of applications that are delayed due to a failure to verify witness details. The Passport Service and An Garda Síochána are keeping the system under review to ensure that it continues to operate effectively.
976. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number of passport applications currently outstanding and awaiting approval by county of origin in tabular form. [40843/22]
View answerThe number of applications in the Passport Service system broken down by county are outlined below in tabular form. This table also breaks down the number of applications that are being processed by the Passport Service and the number of applications that are awaiting further action from the applicant.
|
County |
Awaiting further action from the applicant |
Passport Service Processing |
Grand Total |
|
Antrim |
2,851 |
2,754 |
5,605 |
|
Armagh |
672 |
712 |
1,384 |
|
Carlow |
355 |
222 |
577 |
|
Cavan |
410 |
327 |
737 |
|
Clare |
583 |
437 |
1,020 |
|
Cork |
2,435 |
1,851 |
4,286 |
|
Derry |
1,095 |
1,094 |
2,189 |
|
Donegal |
870 |
613 |
1,483 |
|
Down |
1,930 |
1,995 |
3,925 |
|
Dublin |
5,796 |
4,816 |
10,612 |
|
Fermanagh |
269 |
198 |
467 |
|
Galway |
1,301 |
1,020 |
2,321 |
|
Kerry |
769 |
518 |
1,287 |
|
Kildare |
1,142 |
904 |
2,046 |
|
Kilkenny |
460 |
374 |
834 |
|
Laois |
452 |
353 |
805 |
|
Leitrim |
156 |
124 |
280 |
|
Limerick |
901 |
709 |
1,610 |
|
Longford |
199 |
185 |
384 |
|
Louth |
741 |
520 |
1,261 |
|
Mayo |
605 |
482 |
1,087 |
|
Meath |
1,058 |
862 |
1,920 |
|
Monaghan |
331 |
232 |
563 |
|
Offaly |
380 |
310 |
690 |
|
Roscommon |
287 |
254 |
541 |
|
Sligo |
301 |
292 |
593 |
|
Tipperary |
694 |
599 |
1,293 |
|
Tyrone |
843 |
860 |
1,703 |
|
Waterford |
498 |
452 |
950 |
|
Westmeath |
423 |
364 |
787 |
|
Wexford |
804 |
578 |
1,382 |
|
Wicklow |
680 |
549 |
1,229 |
977. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the actions and engagements that his Department has taken to date to reduce carbon emissions and increase energy efficiency in all buildings under his Department. [40912/22]
View answerMy Department has been consistently active nationally and internationally across all aspects of the Climate Action agenda. Enhancing the sustainability of our buildings, operations, systems and processes at headquarters and across the network of Irish diplomatic and consular missions is a key priority in my Department’s Statement of Strategy 2021-23. Our aim is to achieve the status nationally and internationally as a Foreign Ministry with strong green credentials.
In July 2019, I launched the Department’s Green Foreign Ministry initiative, following which, a Green Committee was established. Chaired by a senior official in our Corporate Services Team, and with members drawn from across our global network, it is tasked with championing the sustainability agenda across the network and monitoring progress in achieving our goals. The Green Committee oversaw the preparation of a detailed Action Plan that lists almost 60 sustainability measures under six separate headings that the Department began implementing in late 2019.
My Department's headquarters buildings are provided by the Office of Public Works and we have been working closely with them in order to improve our sustainability. The Department of Foreign Affairs has already achieved a 49% increase in energy efficiency since 2011, surpassing the public sector target of 33% set under the Government’s Energy Policy Framework.
Each of our 97 diplomatic and consular missions has a trained Mission Sustainability Officer, and individual missions are being encouraged to work to achieve the status of “Green Star Mission” by pioneering innovative energy and other resource-efficiency approaches for subsequent application across the wider network.
On systems and processes, the Department is also proud to have made a substantial contribution to the reduction in consumption of paper, including by shifting the vast majority of passport renewals to the much faster and more efficient online channel and by removing the vast majority of desktop printers.
On the international front, officers of my Department’s Corporate Services team helped to spearhead the establishment of an international network of like-minded foreign ministries to facilitate the sharing of best practice and evolving approaches to sustainability in foreign services. The network meets regularly and currently comprises representatives of Ireland, Denmark, Canada, France, Romania, New Zealand, Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK. Ireland will co-chair the network for the first semester of 2023.
980. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if it is proposed to have early meetings of the British-Irish Council and the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference following the appointment of a new British Prime Minister, to discuss issues of immediate concern including the protocol legislation and the totally unacceptable proposals published by the British Government regarding legacy issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41016/22]
View answerThe British Irish Council (BIC), which is an institution under Strand Three of the Good Friday Agreement, brings together the Irish Government, British Government, Scottish Government, Northern Ireland Executive, Welsh Government, Isle of Man Government, Government of Jersey, and the Government of Guernsey. The Taoiseach represented the Government at the 37th BIC summit held in Guernsey on 8 July last. The next summit will be hosted by the British Government and is due to take place in Blackpool on 10-11 November next.
The British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC) is also an important institution under Strand Three of the Good Friday Agreement, bringing together the Irish and British Governments to promote bilateral co-operation on matters of mutual interest within the competence of both Governments. The British Government will host the next BIIGC in the early Autumn.
It has proved challenging to find a date for the next meeting of the BIIGC. I hope we can convene a meeting early in the autumn.
The BIC and BIIGC provide important forums for formal and informal discussions of matters of concern to the Government, including the Protocol and legacy legislation.
The British Government’s unilateral legislation on the Protocol is deeply disappointing and concerning. I am in ongoing contact with my counterparts in the British Government with regard to this legislation. I spoke by phone with UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on 13 June. During this engagement, I made clear that this legislation, if implemented, would amount to a breach of international law. Far from fixing challenges arising from the Protocol, this legislation would create a whole new set of uncertainties and would damage relationships within Northern Ireland, between our Governments, and between the UK and the EU and its Member States.
I also discussed this issue during my recent engagements with the new Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Shailesh Vara, in London on Monday 11 July, following a phone call immediately upon his appointment. I again underlined the importance of the British Government returning to working jointly with the EU including on the pragmatic solutions the EU has proposed.
We also discussed legacy issues, and I raised our serious concerns regarding the Legacy Bill. It is deeply disappointing that the British Government has chosen to unilaterally introduce legislation on legacy issues, moving away from the process agreed in the Stormont House Agreement - a process that was agreed by both Governments and the majority of the political parties in Northern Ireland. We have consistently maintained that any way forward on legacy must be based on a collective approach and a broad measure of consensus, with victims at its centre.
In the meeting of 11 July, I urged the Secretary of State against moving forward with unilateral action in this deeply sensitive space, and against taking an approach that does not have the support of victims or any political party in Northern Ireland. I will continue to remain in close contact with the Secretary of State, and our officials will also continue to engage on this issue.
In the period ahead, we will continue to urge the British Government at every available opportunity to step back from unilateral action and return to a partnership approach.
