Many of my constituents have been in touch recently to inform me of difficulties in getting their passports processed by the Home Office, with many applications having surpassed the 10-week waiting period.

Despite repeated warnings to Ministers of rocketing demand for new passports this summer, and months to plan ahead for it, the current backlog is said to be sitting as high as 700,000 – and is expected to only get worse.

This chaos is denying hard-working families across St Helens well-deserved holidays and long-planned trips – and costing them thousands of pounds in losses. It is utterly unacceptable.

I have raised these issues directly with Ministers, and my team and I are doing all we can to support affected local residents and press for the swift resolution of outstanding cases; with positive outcomes to report.

However, it’s clear the Home Office needs to urgently get a grip on the situation overall before even more families face misery.

To all residents planning on getting away this summer, please do check your passport date far in advance and, if necessary, renew it with as much notice as possible.