Dear Sir,

I am hoping you can help my family and probably many other Bermudians, whom I suspect are equally frustrated. It is about the extraordinary and, quite frankly, outrageous time it takes to get a passport renewed.

My daughter, who is a university student in Britain, requested a renewal of her British Overseas Territories Citizen (Bermuda) passport in early May 2022. I calculate that to be at least 24 weeks ago.

To add insult to injury, when you call the immigration department, all you get is an answering machine. It invites you to leave a message but no one ever calls you back. And if you send an e-mail to the address provided on the Government’s website, you don’t get a reply.

Thankfully, my daughter was able to return to university using her British passport. (There are many good reasons for Bermudians to secure a British passport, but I suspect few had ever thought that it could work as a critical back-up when a renewal of their Bermuda passport stretches into six months.)

Recently, David Burt, the Premier, happily splashed taxpayer cash on other initiatives, but I guess the mobility of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Bermudians is of no concern to him or his minister.

I am hoping you can bring this matter to the Government’s attention.

TIM SMITH

Paget