Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the level of recruitment for HM Passport Office in respect of meeting (a) the current and (b) future level of demand,; and if she will take steps to increase salaries offered to those staff in the context of recent trends of inflation.

HM Passport Office staffing numbers have been increased over 1200 since April 2021. This has delivered the operational capacity needed to process applications in record numbers, at approximately one million each month.

HM Passport Office will continue to recruit to cover attrition, ensuring that it remains fully resourced.

Pay negotiations for Home Office staff are ongoing.