A Fine Gael senator is calling for a Junior Minister for Passports to be appointed to deal with the current backlog.
Martin Conway says the situation has become a “national emergency”.
There are 195,000 applications currently in the system.
At the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party meeting last night, one TD is understood to have called for the removal of the secretary general at the Department of Foreign Affairs over the issue.
Senator Conway says drastic action is needed:
