It is about asking ourselves how we can communicate better to ensure that these mistakes are not made, because they delay everything.
We have had to improve communications in this area because there were many examples of incorrect applications. I referred to this aspect earlier.Īdditionally, the passport service released two online video guides that provide tips to ensure that passport photos and witnessed consent forms for children are correctly submitted. We are acting to address this issue and to put a much bigger system in place, which will involve many more people answering calls, to provide a better service for the public in this regard. This is important because many members of the public contact the offices of Deputies when they are utterly frustrated that they cannot get through to the passport office by phone. Many of the new staff have been assigned to the customer service hub and this will greatly increase the number of calls and web chats being answered and will assist with customers getting access to the information they need. In addition to significantly more staff being assigned, the passport service has made three important improvements that will assist our customers in ensuring their passport applications are correct and can be processed without delay. The addition of these staff has allowed the passport service to maintain its current turnaround times in the face of enormous levels of demand. In terms of staffing, more than 400 staff have been assigned to the passport service since June 2021, including 120 in recent weeks.
To achieve these types of results and to continue to improve the service, my Department has made a huge investment in the passport service. Our passport service is performing at its highest capacity ever and is producing an average of 6,000 passports every day.
Additionally, almost half of adult online renewals, which are the vast majority of passport applications, are processed within two working days. Our passport service has managed to decrease the processing time for first-time online applications from 40 working days to 25 working days in just four months. In countries such as the UK and the US, the turnaround time for all types of passports can be up to ten weeks and that is increasing, rather than decreasing. This level of demand is not unique to Ireland. This is as a direct result of pent-up demand for travel after two years of pandemic-related restrictions. It is experiencing an unprecedented volume of demand for passports. As we all know, it has been under a lot of pressure this year. The passport service is continually working to deliver enhanced customer experience and service delivery to our citizens. 99, 101, 104, 107 and 114 together.Īs there are several questions grouped together, I hope the Acting Chairman will give me some extra time to answer.
0 kommentar(er)
