Speaker, the reply is as follows. We have been working very hard in the department to process the backlog in permanent residence applications. We established a permit adjudication committee in order to fast-track the processing of the applications. This committee convenes each day to assess applications. From 23 January to 27 February this year the committee adjudicated 1 504 applications.
With respect to temporary residence permits, there isn't any application backlog. We have a dedicated team of adjudicators who on a daily basis process all temporary residence permit applications that are received. We have also established an enquiries unit to deal with any outstanding temporary residence permit applications. If we find that there are queries, that unit follows them up.
We anticipate that the current backlog in permanent residence applications will be cleared by the end of the year, as it is a fairly involved process going through quite a number of detailed papers and submissions associated with an application, and also given the fact that permanent residence applications often involve more than one individual. The primary applicant may have a family member or several members of the family as part of the application. All of that requires processing and checking.
We are finalising applications for temporary residence permits within the annual performance plan turnaround time of eight weeks. Thank you very much, Speaker. [Applause.]