DUBLIN, May 30 (Xinhua) -- There has been a rapid increase in Irish passport applications from people living in the United Kingdom in the aftermath of the leave result in the UK's EU membership referendum, said Irish Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan on Tuesday.
Between June 2016 and May 29 this year, the number of passport applications has increased by 50 percent from Northern Ireland and 55 percent from mainland Britain, said Flanagan, when answering questions from opposition lawmakers in parliament.
He said there have been 75,145 passport applications from Northern Ireland and 70,000 ones from mainland Britain during the period.
The minister said he was keeping the situation under review, adding that extra staff had been hired to cope with the demand.
The decision of the UK to leave the EU is thought to be a large factor in the increased demand for Irish passports.
Driven by a surge in applications from UK, the number of Irish passports to be issued this year is set to pass the one million mark, according to the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs.
