Written Answers Nos. 413-432
413. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the status of the application for the foreign birth registration of a person (details supplied); and the expected timeframe in which this application will be processed. [11284/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department is responsible for citizenship by descent through the Foreign Births Register under the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended.
The processing of Foreign Birth Registration has resumed and will be gradually scaling up in line with the recruitment of additional resources. Due to the complex nature of the Foreign Birth Registration process, the large increase in applications received following the Brexit vote in the UK, and the pause in the Service due to necessary Covid-19 restrictions, applicants should allow approximately 2 years from the receipt of supporting documentation for processing of Foreign Birth Registration applications at this time. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, and the subsequent reassignment of Foreign Birth Registration staff to assist in the provision of essential passport services, the Foreign Birth Registration Service was paused for nearly 15 months across the 2020-2021 period.
The application referenced was registered on 31 January 2020, and is due to be processed in the near future. A member of the FBR team will be in contact with the applicant shortly in this regard. My Department is fully committed to the continued allocation of additional resources over the coming period to assist with the processing of the Foreign Birth Registration applications currently on hand and the high volume of new applications anticipated this year.
415. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the Irish consulate in Alexandria, Egypt can release to an organisation (details supplied) copies of documents pertaining to a person; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11333/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI note the case to which the Deputy refers regarding visa application documents. Under the Data Protection Act we cannot release information relating to this case. It is open to the applicant to submit a subject access request (SAR) or FOI request on their own behalf to the Department of Justice to obtain the information requested.
Policy and procedure related to the provision of visas is a matter for the Department of Justice.
417. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No. 396 of 22 February 2022, the naval exercises by foreign navies he was referring to and the dates and duration of all such exercises in the past 20 years. [11347/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs I have said, under international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), naval exercises are recognised as being part of the freedom of the high seas. These exercises taking place in the Irish EEZ or the passage of naval vessels of other States through the Irish EEZ is not in any way an infringement of our national territory. States are not obliged, in most cases, to inform the coastal authorities of any proposed naval exercises. My attention has been drawn to some naval exercises that have taken place in Ireland’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
As I advised in my capacity as Minister for Defence when replying to the Deputy on the 15th of February, I will not be disclosing specific details that are held by the Naval Service in relation to activities of foreign militaries.
418. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he or his predecessors have given permission to the other countries' warships or submarines to conduct naval exercises within Ireland’s territorial sea in the past 20 years. [11348/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn occasion, countries seek permission to participate in a joint exercise with the Irish Naval Service in the Irish territorial sea. Permission has been given in a small number of such instances, none of which involved live fire. Outside of these rare circumstances, permission is not granted for naval vessels of other States to conduct naval exercises within our territorial sea.
419. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will return a passport and certificate of naturalisation to a person (details supplied) who requires same to travel on 14 March 2022. [11367/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraWith regard to the specific application about which the Deputy has enquired, the Passport Service has returned the documents referenced to the applicant.
420. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the percentage accuracy of the updates available to the client-facing interface of the passport tracking system on a monthly basis for the past five years to date in 2022; and the number of instances in which the system was down and-or not operational to the optimum level over the same time period [11426/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra428. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason the passport tracker on his Department’s website is not correctly reflecting the status of passport applications in a number of cases; if his attention has been drawn to an IT issue with the passport tracker; the length of time this issue has been ongoing; the steps that are being taken to resolve this issue; when this issue will be resolved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11575/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 420 and 428 together.
The current online Passport Tracker facility which is available on the Department of Foreign Affairs website has been in operation since the end of 2016. The historical data requested by Deputy Murphy is not available as the Passport Tracker continually updates as an application progresses through the system.
The online Passport Tracker tool provides applicants with an indication of how their application is progressing through the system and gives an estimated issue date based on the current average application processing time.
The Passport Service regrets that the Passport Tracker recently experienced technical issues which resulted in the tracker not correctly updating a small number of applications. The Passport Service became aware of the issue earlier this month and initiated an investigation at that point. This issue has been identified and is now fixed. While it has not been possible to immediately update all affected applications on the tracker, this will happen automatically when these applications reach the next stage of the process. It is rare for the Passport Tracker to experience this kind of technical issue. The Passport Service regrets any inconvenience caused to applicants who have been affected.
Applicants who wish to receive an update on the status of their passport application can contact the Customer Service Hub at (01) 6711633 or via Webchat on my Department's website (www.dfa.ie/passports).
421. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the actions that Ireland is taking in response to the Russian Federation's recognition of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. [11460/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraIreland’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders and its right to choose its own foreign and security policy path is unwavering.
The decision by the Russian Federation to proceed with the recognition of the non-government controlled areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine as independent entities contravenes international law, is a blatant violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, and marks a clear and unilateral breach of the Minsk agreements.
On Friday 25th February, the EU adopted a strong sanctions package which will have a long lasting effect on the Russian economy including on the oligarchs and individuals who have supported the invasion of Ukraine.
Foreign Ministers decided to add to the sanctions package previously agreed by EU leaders. The names of President Putin and Foreign Minister Lavrov have been added to the list of Russians who will have their assets frozen in the EU.
On behalf of Ireland I made the case for the inclusion of SWIFT in a further package of sanctions expected to be agreed in the coming days.
We discussed the humanitarian consequences of Russia’s aggressive attack and encouraged support for a humanitarian response from the EU. Ireland has already allocated €10m for humanitarian action.
The measures announced by the Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, allow visa free access for Ukrainian citizens to travel to Ireland. These are an important practical measure of solidarity with Ukrainians living in Ireland and those who are affected in Ukraine.
At the EU Foreign Affairs Council on Friday EU Foreign Ministers consulted on diplomatic measures and decided not to expel Russian Ambassadors. This and other possible diplomatic measures remain on the table. We will continue to keep this situation under close review in coordination with other EU Member States.
As Minister for Foreign Affairs, I have a responsibility to consider the potential impact of decisions I take on our ability to assist Irish citizens in Russia and Ukraine and we are maintaining a clear line of communication for now.
Our diplomatic team has now left Ukraine and our Kyiv Embassy will operate on a remote basis from Dublin.
On my instruction, the Secretary General of my Department summoned the Russian Ambassador on Friday 25th February to make clear the government’s strong condemnation of the invasion and Russia’s gross violation of international law and the UN charter.
422. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason for the delay in documents submitted on 8 December 2021 being scanned, checked and attached to a passport application; when this passport, which has an estimated issue date of 14 February 2022, will actually be dispatched to the applicant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11470/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraWith regard to the specific application about which the Deputy has enquired, the Passport Service regrets the delay in processing this application. The Passport Service has contacted the applicant's parent directly and the passport has been issued and dispatched.
424. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when a passport application by a person (details supplied) in County Galway will be processed; if the passport will issue to the applicant in time to enable travel on a school trip on 2 March 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11476/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraWith regard to the specific application about which the Deputy has enquired, the Passport Service has issued a passport to the applicant.
429. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the policy instructions or policy documents that he has brought to the attention of An Bord Pleanála since coming into office [11599/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraNo policy instructions, policy documents, planning appeals or planning observations have been sent to An Bord Pleanála by the Department of Foreign Affairs since my appointment in June 2017.
430. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will establish guidelines in relation to the use of diplomatic bags; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11650/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic and Consular Relations, 1961 the Department of Foreign Affairs operates a diplomatic bag service to transmit post, equipment and supplies to and from Ireland’s network of diplomatic and consular missions. Use of the diplomatic bag is governed by an internal office notice, most recently up-dated in 2018, in which staff are reminded that the service is primarily for official use. The Department does allow for occasional use of the service for the receipt and transmission by posted staff of personal items, including small parcels and letters. Usage of the diplomatic bag is monitored by the staff of the Department’s headquarters Registry, and by Heads of Missions, in order to ensure compliance with the terms of the office notice. A general reminder about appropriate use of the diplomatic bag was issued to all staff on 23 February, 2022.
431. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the breakdown of the total cost of sending and receiving diplomatic bags over the past five years with individual costs associated with each expedition laid out (details supplied). [11651/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic and Consular Relations, 1961 my Department operates a diplomatic bag service to transmit post, equipment and supplies to and from Ireland’s network of 97 diplomatic and consular missions. The service was procured under EU guidelines and is provided by a professional logistics company with worldwide reach. In an average year some 5,000 diplomatic bags are sent and received by my Department’s headquarters Registry. This essential and confidential service is part of the operations of a modern and efficient foreign ministry. The cost of the diplomatic bag service over the past five years and in 2022 to date is set out in the following table. Costs are not recorded on a mission-by-mission basis.
|
2017 € |
2018 € |
2019 € |
2020 € |
2021 € |
2022 to date € |
|
441,414 |
475,116 |
610,731 |
478,146 |
565,383 |
85,112 |
432. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will urgently review reopening the passport office to walk-ins and appointments; if his attention has been drawn to the numerous issues that are evolving online with applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11669/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraSince late January, all Passport Service sites in Dublin and Cork have been operating at full capacity following the ending of many Covid-19 public health restrictions, and all services have fully resumed.
The Passport Offices in Mount St, Dublin 2 and in Cork offer an Urgent Appointment Service for the renewal of passports. This service was launched in Dublin on 27 September 2021 and in Cork on 26 October 2021. The Urgent Appointment Service ensures that, for those who unexpectedly require a very urgent turnaround of a passport renewal, there is an option available that is transparent, predictable and clear. It means that an applicant can book and pay for their appointment, safe in the knowledge that they will have their passport within a day, or a few days. Customers availing of this service can renew their passport within 1 or 4 days in Dublin and within 4 days in Cork.
Earlier this month, the Passport Service increased the number of appointments at its public offices by 100%, providing an extra 170 appointments per week. To avail of the Urgent Appointment Service for Passport Renewal, applicants must first book an appointment to attend the public office in Dublin or Cork. Applicants can book an appointment through the Department of Foreign Affairs website (www.dfa.ie/passports)
The Passport Online service offers Irish citizens the ability to apply online for their passport 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It is a user-friendly, efficient service that consistently offers processing times up to 4 times faster than paper-based passport renewal applications. Over 90% of all passport applications are received through Passport Online.
All Irish citizens, including children, can use the online system to renew their passports from anywhere in the world. Passport Online can also be accessed by first time applicants, irrespective of age in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Great Britain, Europe, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the USA.
The Passport Service regrets that Passport Online experienced technical issues during the week of 24 January 2022. Despite these issues, over 32,000 applications were submitted via Passport Online that week.
A scheduled system upgrade that has improved the responsiveness and efficiency of the system was completed on Friday, 28 January 2022. This upgrade has addressed the issues experienced by some customers. Since the upgrade was completed, Passport Online has been fully functional and operating smoothly.
In cases where passport applicants submitted an application twice and incurred a second fee during the week of 24 January 2002, these applicants can receive a full refund for the first application by contacting the Customer Service Hub at (01) 6711633 or via Webchat on my Department's website (www.dfa.ie/passports).
My Department has been pro-actively planning to ensure the necessary resources are in place to meet the current and expected level of demand in 2022 and is making an unprecedented investment in the Passport Service in terms of additional staff and improvements to the passport processing and customer service systems.
I strongly urge anyone who is considering travelling overseas this year, particularly families with young children, to check the validity of their passports before booking travel and to apply for their passports online in plenty of time.
