The UK’s Passport Office will revert back to the control of the Home Office following a “summer of chaos” when a severe backlog delayed receipt of new passports for thousands of Brits.
Home Secretary Theresa May also announced that its director, Paul Pugh, will not keep his job.
A report by MPs from the Home Affairs Select Committee condemned the backlog problems as a “summer of chaos” and said it was a “mistake” to shut passport centres abroad which, it said, played a crucial role in the delays along with a “poorly handled” reorganisation.
The centres were replaced with a centralised service in the UK which began its work only in May last year but was soon floundering.
The Home Secretary’s surprise announcement did not appear to address the notion of re-instating these offices.
The report also expressed concern that many people waiting for their passports had to pay extra fees to expedite the service and others had to pay additional money to change flight bookings, or forego them altogether. Members of the public who lost out should be compensated, the report added.
This further change will mean that HMPO will lose its agency status and instead report directly to ministers after not having done so for five years.
