Passport Services

9. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the action being taken by her Department to reduce the current re-processing timeline of a passport application where a query is raised, in view of the fact that when an additional information request is made, the application is paused until such time as the new documentation is received and processed, which can add an additional 15 working days to an application. [69138/26]

Visa Applications

130. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the steps he will take to assist an applicant (details supplied) to renew their permission to continue to stay in Ireland. [69279/26]

Fuel Prices

146. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine with the extension of the fuel income support scheme that consideration would be given to amending the terms and conditions of the scheme, in particular where it sets out that no aid is payable in respect of applications where the total claim is less than €100, in view that many smaller farmers and contractors missed out on the initial payment owing to this clause and wish to benefit from the scheme going forward,. [6

Programme for Government

352. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment for an update on the Programme for Government commitment to develop a new national life sciences strategy; and the expected timeline for its publication. [68282/26]

Financial Services

176. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance to confirm details of the Government's proposed new investment scheme; and when it is likely to be put in place. [68632/26]

Departmental Schemes

262. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Transport the status of a fuel income support scheme application (details supplied); and the timeframe for funds to issue to the eligible applicant. [67935/26]

34th Dáil debate — 2026-10-01

Deputy Colm Burke As the Tánaiste is aware, the Defence Forces have confirmed that they intend to dispose of armoured personnel carriers. These are vehicles they no longer require. Has a decision been made in respect of inviting tenders to be submitted to facilitate the sale? Would consideration be given for a charitable organisation to acquire same, to be used for humanitarian purposes? One of the groups interested has already sent over 200 all-terrain vehicles to Ukraine, providing support to

34th Dáil debate — 2026-10-01

Deputy Colm Burke Will the Minister outline what action is being taken by the Department to reduce the current timeline for reprocessing a passport application query when a query is raised, in view of the fact that when an additional information request is made the application is paused until such time as the new documentation is received and processed, which can add an additional 15 working days, which is three full weeks, to the application?

34th Dáil debate — 2026-10-01

Deputy Colm Burke I thank the Minister very much. It is important that I first acknowledge that huge improvements have been made by the Passport Office. In fairness to the staff, they are extremely helpful when we do contact the office. My concern is that in a lot of cases where we run into problems, it relates to young children. If parents have two or three children who they are trying to sort out passports for, it is very stressful. When the notice comes and they are advised that it is 15 wor

34th Dáil debate — 2026-10-01

Deputy Colm Burke One of the problems we find is that people going on holiday, for example, in July, apply for passports in May, when, in fact, they could have easily applied in February or March. The Department might consider bringing forward the awareness campaign to early January or February. It is something that needs to be looked at to encourage people to apply well in advance of the time they intend to travel. In relation to photographs, one of the common issues that comes up, especially