THE Passport Office will be reabsorbed by the Home Office, Home Secretary Theresa May announced yesterday

Following two reviews and demands from the influential Home Affairs Select Committee, HM Passport Office (HMPO) will cease to be an executive agency from October 1, Ms May confirmed.

It was established as an agency in May 2013, but earlier this year it was accused of putting holidaymakers’ summer plans in jeopardy as it struggled to cope a 550,000 backlog of applications.

“I have considered the review and relevant Cabinet Office guidance and decided that it should be brought into the Home Office and report directly to ministers,” said Ms May.

“As the events of the summer showed, it is essential that HMPO is run as efficiently as possible and is as accountable as possible. I also know that its hard-working staff are committed to delivering a high-quality service to the public.”

But public-sector union PCS warned that the new HMPO must get the staff it needs.

The union gave a cautious welcome to the move, but said that it would not accept a simple rebranding of the agency and that it was disappointed that it had not been consulted.

Ministers must address the serious shortfalls in staffing, deliver equal pay with other Home Office staff and ensure further work would not be privatised or outsourced, it said.

The Home Secretary made the announcement immediately prior to the Commons debate on bombing Isis in Iraq.

“Despite the cynical timing of the announcement, clearly designed to bury an awkward issue, we welcome this if it will mean we get the staff we need to provide a quality service under public control,” said PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka.

“Instead of the short-term measures we’ve seen, we want to sit down and negotiate a long-term solution to staffing to ensure the crisis we saw this summer is not repeated in future.”