London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 22, 2025

Johnson threatens to privatise Passport Office over backlog

Johnson threatens to privatise Passport Office over backlog

As travel chaos looms, PM also reported to have warned DVLA over delays in processing applications

Boris Johnson has threatened to “privatise the arse” off the Passport Office if it cannot clear its backlog and deliver better value for money, a senior government source has told reporters.

The prime minister also put the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and other “arm’s length” bodies on notice in comments to cabinet ministers, according to the source who attended Tuesday’s meeting.

There had been an unprecedented surge in demand after the lifting of coronavirus restrictions because 5 million people had delayed renewing their passports during the pandemic.

Under post-Brexit EU travel rules, UK citizens must have at least three months’ validity remaining, which threatens to put more strain on the system.

It comes amid fears of summer of travel chaos with Brexit queues at Dover and concern about the routine cancellation of flights.

Johnson is understood to be “horrified” at the backlog in dealing with passport applications and will summon the agency’s leadership for urgent talks at No 10 next week.

He is said to be concerned that families wanting to go on summer holidays are under pressure to pay up to £100 extra per passport for fast-track applications because of delays.

Pressed on whether privatisation was an option for the Passport Office, Johnson refused to rule it out in an interview with TalkTV. “I’m not going to rule anything out. I don’t mind if it’s public or private, what I want is to deliver value for money and help keep people’s costs down,” he said.

“When I see institutions not delivering things like passports or driving licences in a speedy way ... we want action.”

The source cautioned that privatisation would not be the starting point, but warned that Downing Street could look to businesses to take over if passport bosses could not meet the 10-week target for standard applications costing £75.50.

Johnson was also said to have criticised “post-Covid mañana culture” at some of the bodies for not adapting after the easing of coronavirus restrictions.

As well as the Passport Office, MPs have been raising concerns over significant delays in turning round applications for licences at the DVLA.

Heathrow Airport’s chief executive, John Holland-Kaye, said it was “vital” that people could go on holiday this summer in case the UK reintroduced coronavirus travel restrictions.

“Normally the Passport Office is very slick in processing passports. It’s really disappointing to hear [about delays].

“If it’s not resolved, it is going to mean that people can’t get away.

“After two years of lockdown, we need to make sure people can have a good holiday because many of them have vouchers that they’ve been saving up, they’ve got trips of a lifetime that they’ve put on hold, and we don’t know when things might get closed down again.

“Making the most of the summer is vital,” he said.

On Monday, the Commons heard about one woman who had waited more than five months to receive her daughter’s new passport, and services were branded “either really very good or an absolute shambles”.

The SNP home affairs spokesperson, Stuart McDonald, said: “All our constituents are having to cancel holidays, miss funerals, rearrange visits, with even a new 10-week target routinely being failed.

“What will be done to avoid this predictable mess getting worse? And can we be assured that the 10-week target will not be lengthened further as we approach the summer?”

Home office minister Kevin Foster said: “We don’t have any intention to further extend that standard.

“We are at the moment processing most passports well within it, but we would advise people this is a very, virtually unprecedented surge in demand, and if people are planning to travel this summer we would advise them to get their application in as soon as possible.”

He said the Passport Office dealt with a million applications last month, compared with 7m a year before the pandemic.

Conservative MP Simon Hoare described the backlog as “unprecedented, true, but foreseeable, absolutely”.

The PCS union, which represents Passport Office and DVLA staff, said there is a backlog of applications owing to lack of staff, poor management and failures with private contractors. HMPO planned to recruit 1,700 staff, with 450 in situ by the end of 2021. Only 300 were in place by the end of the year, and they were agency staff, the PCS union said.

The union’s general secretary, Mark Serwotka, said: “It is clear to our members that a crucial service like the Passport Office needs to be properly resourced. It is absurd for Boris Johnson to threaten to privatise HMPO, when it is clear that the current problems are mainly down to increased casualisation of the workforce.

“Many people are desperate to now start travelling again, and so I would call on the Home Office to fulfil their duties to the UK public and adequately fund the service, bringing the whole process back in house.”

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Privatising these services would force people to pay a premium for private profit, [adding to the cost of their passports and driving licenses]. That’s the last thing working people need in a cost of living crisis. Boris Johnson and his ministers are responsible for running these services. Instead of making bad policy on the hoof, he should call in his ministers to get to the bottom of why they are doing such a bad job.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
×