§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for British passports were processed in(a) 1979, (b) 1985, (c) 1986, (d) 1987, (e) 1988, (f) 1989 and (g) for each month of 1990.
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§ Mr. Peter LloydThe total number of British passport services in 1979 and each of the years from 1985 to 1989 was:
Millions 1979 1.79 1985 2.02 1986 2.50 1987 2.43 1988 2.83 1989 2.77 The total number of British passport services for each month of 1990 was:
Number January 265,000 February 360,000 March 414,000 April 364,000 May 395,000 June 329,000 July 308,000 August 280,000 September 168,000 October 146,000 November 184,000 December 100,000 TOTAL 3,310,000
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many passports were received in 1990 at British passport offices.
§ Mr. Peter LloydThe number of passport applications received in 1990 was 3.37 million.
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the average length of waiting time for a British passport application completion for each month in 1990.
§ Mr. Peter LloydThe average time, in working days, for the processing of a properly completed non-urgent British passport application for each month in 1990 is shown in the table.
Working days January 7.94 February 10.40 March 11.68 April 9.67 May 11.83 June 11.54 July 7.71 August 3.00 September 2.75 October 2.83 November 3.50 December 4.33 The average for the whole of 1990 was 7.27 working days. Urgent applications were processed more quickly, in accordance with travellers' needs.
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the use of British passports after 1992.
§ Mr. Peter LloydBritish nationals, as defined in accordance with EC law, will continue to be able to30W exercise their rights of free movement between European Community countries after 1992 on production of their passports.
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members of staff work at each of the major passport offices in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. Peter LloydThe complement of permanent staff employed at each regional passport office as at 31 December 1990 is shown in the table:
Number London 202.5 Liverpool 269.5 Peterborough 2125 Newport 2120 Glasgow 202.0 Belfast 78.0 In addition, up to 320 temporary staff may be employed at these offices at periods of peak demand.
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many British visitor's passports were issued in each month of 1990.
§ Mr. Peter LloydThe table shows the number of British visitor's passports issued between January and November 1990. The figures for December 1990 are not yet available.
Number January 81,560 February 97,721 March 123,232 April 192,963 May 202,764 June 243,450 July 387,657 August 270,894 September 200,620 October 139,284 November 66,780
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much new funding will be given to British passport offices in 1991–92 to improve services.
§ Mr. Peter LloydProposed gross provision for the passport department, within the overall provision for Home Office vote 3, is £51.9 million for 1991–92 as compared to £41 million under the supply estimates for 1990–91, an increase of £10.9 million. The increased provision is to enable the department to deal with anticipated increases in demand from the public for passport services and to introduce improved working practices, including modifications to offices. There is also provision for improvements related to agency status, including new accounting systems, enhanced training, devolved personnel management and improved communications.