§ 69. Mr. Roebuckasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he is aware that joint passports are considered invalid when wives wish to travel alone but not when husbands travel alone; and whether he will amend this practice to ensure equality.
§ Mr. William Rodgers:Although these passports are commonly called joint passports, this is a misnomer. The passport is, in fact, issued to the husband, and the wife's particulars are included as a matter of convenience if this is requested. This does not make her the joint holder of the passport.
As I told my hon. Friend, the Member for Bedfordshire, South (Mr. Gwilym Roberts) on 12th June 1967, the present position stems from an international agreement which it would be wrong to abrogate unilaterally.—[Vol. 748, c. 92–3.]