Passport interview facility must stay in Berwick, says Beith

10.30.00am GMT Mon 9th Nov 2009

Passport interview facilities must be kept open in Berwick, says Sir Alan Beith MP.

Sir Alan Beith MP has visited the Passport Interview Office in Berwick to talk to staff about Government proposals to close the facility. The office on the Quayside, which has only been open for two years, is used by people making their first application for a passport following the introduction of rules requiring them to be interviewed by staff from the Passport Service.

Sir Alan said

"Berwick's office is one of a large number that the Passport Service want to close, even though it has only been open for a couple of years.

"It is quite wrong that people should not be able to get interviews any nearer than Edinburgh or Durham, and it is perfectly possible to keep the facility in Berwick at a low cost if premises could be shared, perhaps with Northumberland County Council.

"I will be putting alternative options to the Minister that are designed to ensure people don't have to travel long distances to get a passport."

"As well as the financial cost there is also the amount of time it will take people to travel to the regional offices."

The loss of the Passport Interview Office in Berwick could discourage people from applying for a passport and taking the opportunity to travel abroad. Older people who may now have their first chance to visit family in Canada or Australia, for example, could be deterred. Those looking for a cheap holiday may also be put off - the cost of travelling to the regional Passport Offices can be almost as much as the cost of some cheap flights abroad from Edinburgh or Newcastle airports.

The cost of a day return train ticket to Durham from Berwick upon Tweed is £24.00 and the cost of a day return train ticket to Edinburgh is £17.10 (thetrainline.com, 9 November 2009). Ryanair is currently offering flights to/from Edinburgh to Girona (Barcelona) for £0.00 plus taxes and from Newcastle to Girona for £0.99 plus taxes.