To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many interviews at passport centres had resulted in the refusal of a passport as at 31 January 2009. (255914)

The interview is one part of the process of confirming the identity of first time adult passport applicants and one of the main purposes of the process is to deter anyone from making a false application for a passport. At 31 January 2009, the Identity and Passport Service had closed 87 cases without issuing a passport after the applicant had failed an identity interview. At present 107 other cases are being investigated following failure to establish identity at interview.