The majority in the Storting’s Justice Committee on Tuesday supported a proposal for immediate measures to reduce the waiting time to obtain a new passport, and proposes extended opening hours and increased staffing at the passport office with a large increase. The governing parties Labor and Social Democrats do not support the proposal, but are in the minority when the matter is to be voted on in the Storting on 2 June. The proposal is the Liberal Party’s. The party’s representative Ingvild W. Thorsvik hopes it can save the holiday for Norwegians who want to travel. – Creates false hopes But already in March, the Minister of Justice asked the police to extend the opening hours of the passport offices, and consider reopening of passport offices that were closed under the previous government. Now the Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) warns the opposition against creating false hopes: – This proposal has no bearing on the prospect of delivering more passports before the summer. The government implemented these measures almost three months ago. But the main problem is that the supplier lacks components for production. We have extended the opening hours and increased staffing, but that is not where the problem lies now. The manufacturer of Norwegian passports lacks paper, glue and a component for the chip. The problem affects the whole of Europe. The reason is the war in Ukraine and the pandemic, according to the government. – The government is working to turn all the stones to find solutions and look at possible measures, but I want to emphasize that the situation is serious. WARNING: Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl warns against proposals from the opposition. Photo: Beate Oma Dahle / NTB Still long queues Thorsvik in the Liberal Party thinks the passport queues are still long. At the same time, she emphasizes that the proposal was put forward in the committee in March. And it is only after this that we have also had problems with the raw materials for the passports. The police website states that there are approx. 7 weeks delivery time on passports, somewhat more in areas with long postage. – A lot is now falling on the producers. The Justice Department urgently summoned passport maker Thales to a meeting in late March. Since then we have not heard anything, says Thorsvik. She expects the Minister of Justice to clean up when there is now only one month left before the joint holiday starts. CONCERNED: Parliamentary representative for the Liberal Party, Ingvild Wetrhus Thorsvik, demands urgent action against the passport crisis. Photo: Patrick da Silva Sæther / NRK Must think creatively – So what is the point of the proposal from the Liberal Party, if the measures you propose have already been introduced? – The point is that measures must be taken. We want to give the administration backing to think creatively to find solutions. Thorsvik mentions several possibilities: Maybe an emergency passport can last longer? Or ID cards can be made cheaper, so people choose this instead, if they are only going to travel within the EU / EEA. – Temporary passport offices can also be a solution. And has the government sought to find other suppliers of raw materials for passports, Thorsvik asks.
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The Storting demands immediate action against the passport crisis – NRK Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
