Written Answers Nos. 1-82
77. Deputy Peter Fitzpatrick asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason a passport, which is out of date for more than five years, is seen as a first-time passport; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13512/23]
View answerAn adult whose passport has expired more than five years ago will need to apply for their next passport as a first time applicant if their expired passport was issued more than 15 years ago.
All passport applications are subject to the provisions of the Passports Act 2008, as amended. Section 8 of the Act provides for the processing of personal data by the Passport Service as required for the issuance of passports and the maintenance of the integrity of the Passport Service system.
In order to comply with its obligations under data protection legislation, the Department will hold data which has been collected for the purposes of processing an application only as long as there is a business need to do so in line with the purposes for which it was collected.
In the case of passport issuance, the data will be held by the Passport Service for 15 years after the date of issuance, as stated in the Passport Service's Data Privacy Notice. After this time the data will be marked for destruction and will be destroyed in line with internal guidelines or guidelines for destruction received from the National Archives. A minimum amount of personal data is held beyond this period for the purpose of fraud prevention in order to maintain the integrity of the Passport Service system.
Under Section 7 of the Passports Act, the Passport Service may require the applicant to produce such documents as are considered necessary for the purposes of issuing a passport. In the case of applicants who are applying after more than 15 years since the issuance of their last passport, it is also possible that documentary requirements may have changed since the issuance of the last passport.
81. Deputy James Lawless asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if the size of the Russian diplomatic presence in Ireland will be reduced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13640/23]
View answer107. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has conducted a review on the activities of the Russian Embassy; if he is satisfied the level of staff employed at the embassy is warranted and justifiable; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13585/23]
View answerThe Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, 1961 (VCDR) identifies three categories of Mission staff as follows:- Diplomatic staff- Administrative and Technical staff, and- Service staff
There are currently 21 officers at the Embassy of the Russian Federation who have been notified to my Department under Article 10 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations - 9 Diplomats and 12 Administrative and Technical staff.
Prior to the invasion of Ukraine there were a total of 30 officers at the Embassy, 14 diplomats and 16 Administrative and Technical staff.
The Government expelled four senior officials from the Embassy of the Russian Federation in March 2022. Those four officials were asked to leave the State because their activities were not in accordance with the international standards of diplomatic behaviour, as agreed in the 1961 Vienna Convention.
Despite our strong disagreement with the actions taken by Russia since their unjustified and illegal full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Government's view is that diplomatic channels between Ireland and the Russian Federation should remain open. This is in the interests of our own citizens, both in Russia itself and in the five central Asian republics to which Ireland is accredited via our Embassy in Moscow. It also allows us to continue to formally convey the Government's strong objection to the illegal and unwarranted war of aggression by Russia against Ukraine. Additionally, it allows us to engage on a range of operational issues, in line with our obligations under the VCDR.
As with all of our responses to this crisis, however, Ireland continues to keep our policies and practices under review and will continue to coordinate closely with other EU Member States on our engagement with Russia, including keeping the size of embassy personnel under review.
