§ Mr. Simsasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is satisfied with the adequacy of the arrangements for dealing with telephone calls at the passport office in Petty France; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. WaddingtonA significant increase in demand led to abnormal delays in the handling of passport applications at all offices this year. Because the London passport office still has a backlog of work, it is still receiving an abnormal volume of telephone inquiries which may make it difficult at peak times for the public to contact the London office by telephone. Work is being transferred to other offices, where there are no longer any delays, to clear the arrears in London as quickly as possible. As a result I expect that the London passport office will soon be able to respond promptly to all telephone inquiries.