Barnsley family's holiday in jeopardy over passport delay

Jane and David Goldthorpe say they have spent more than 20 hours on the phone trying to sort out the problem

A couple from South Yorkshire say they fear they could miss a special holiday due to delays in getting a passport.

David Goldthorpe, from Barnsley, and his whole family plan to travel to Greece next week to celebrate his 70th birthday.

But his wife, Jane, is still waiting for her passport which she applied for several months ago.

The Passport Office has said her application would be "be prioritised to meet the date of travel".

Mrs Goldthorpe said she first applied for the passport alongside her husband's application 20 weeks ago.

He has since received his, but Mrs Goldthorpe's was returned in her maiden name, despite their request for the name to be changed.

She said the stress the long wait had caused while the issue was being sorted was affecting her health.

"It's the time and the effort. I'm not sleeping. I'm going to bed like I normally do to get up for work in the morning. But three 'o'clock, I'm up and I'm downstairs."

'Pillar to post'

Mr Goldthorpe said he and his wife had spent more than 20 hours on the phone with the Passport Office trying to sort out the problem.

"Three, four hours at a time waiting for people to answer us, being put from pillar to post," he said.

If the issue is not resolved in time for their flight next week, the family say they could lose £1,500.

In a statement, the Passport Office said: "We initially processed this passport application within the 10-week guidance period, but we were subsequently alerted to an error with the passport.

"We received the application to replace the passport in mid-July, which will be prioritised to meet the date of travel."

The agency is currently facing a record number of applications for passports.

Latest figures show more than one million people applied for passports in March.

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