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Passports

My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Identity (Meg Hillier) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement. Following a review by the Identity and Passport Service, I have decided that the present requirement for parental consent to passport applications for people aged 16 or 17 should be dropped. This brings the requirements into line with the age at which adult passports are issued. The decision recognises the fact that many people of that age have left home and are taking day to day responsibility for their lives. The age of 16 is recognised in Scottish law as the age from which young people have the right to determine their own needs and court orders in respect of young people elsewhere in the UK normally expire when the person reaches 16. It is also the age at which the Child Abduction Act 1984 no longer applies, at which national insurance numbers are issued and compulsory education ends. Parental consent will still be needed where a court order requires it or the young person has a mental disability. The Identity and Passport Service will also no longer inquire into whether all those with parental responsibility have agreed to a change of name by a person aged 16 or 17. A person of 16 or over may legally change their own name and there is no requirement in law for parental consent. At the same time a new requirement will be introduced for applications for passport renewal to be countersigned for applicants aged 11 or under. This is to confirm identity when passports originally issued to very young children are renewed five years or more later when their appearance will have changed considerably. It is important that we do positively identify children as a safeguard against child substitution to facilitate abduction or illegal entry. At present parents applying to renew passports for children are advised to obtain a countersignature if the child's appearance has significantly changed; this will be replaced by the new simple objective requirement. These changes will be brought into effect during December, when the necessary changes to application forms and IPS systems have been made.