By . Sanchez Manning . The Passport Office was plunged into fresh crisis last night after it emerged that ‘under pressure’ workers are sending out travel documents to the wrong people. A Home Office investigation has been launched after passports, birth certificates and visas were posted to individuals they did not belong to. Shadow Immigration Minister David Hanson said the blunders were ‘a serious breach of security’ and tomorrow he plans to demand a full inquiry into the mistakes. Shadow Immigration Minister David Hanson is calling for an investigation into how many errors have been made because individuals receiving the wrong passport is a 'serious breach' of privacy . Mr Hanson said the likely cause of the errors was the ‘extreme pressure’ that Passport Office staff were now under to clear the backlog of an estimated 500,000 passport applications. He said: ‘I want an investigation into how many errors there are because individuals receiving the wrong passport is a serious breach of their privacy and potentially a serious breach of security. It’s something the Home Office should take very seriously. It’s likely to be because people are working under extreme pressure because of the backlog in passport applications.’ One applicant who recently received the wrong passport was Dale Grinsell, who spoke of his ‘shock’ at opening a letter containing documents belonging to a 17-year-old girl from South-East London. Mr Grinsell, 27, from the West Midlands, had applied this year to the Home Office to renew his passport and received it without any problems. But just a couple of weeks later he received a letter addressed to him that contained the passport belonging to the young woman, with documents including her personal details as well as names and addresses of her next of kin. Mr Grinsell said: ‘We couldn’t believe it. Staring back at us from the photo page was a young girl with long, curly red hair – certainly not me. ‘Luckily we are a law-abiding family, but who knows what could have happened if this had fallen into the wrong hands? ‘You certainly do not expect this from a Government department, and it does make you wonder whether anything of yours has been sent to the wrong place, or ended up in the wrong hands.’ A Passport Office spokesman said the organisation had 'robust procedures' in place to protect individuals' personal data and any suspected breach of privacy or loss of personal information is investigated thoroughly . Mr Grinsell said he returned the passport, but after an initial phone call from Home Office officials to request he send back the documents and the original envelope, he has heard nothing more. In a second case, a nursery worker from Flintshire in Wales told yesterday how she was astounded to receive a letter addressed to her containing the passport, British visa and birth certificate of a Pakistani man living in Lancashire. Sarah Threlfall, 29, received the surprise delivery just a week after her own passport arrived. She said: ‘I couldn’t believe it when I opened it up and found this man’s documents. It’s really concerning as this is important information.’ The mother of two said she has made several attempts to phone the Passport Office about the mix-up, but has been unable to get through. Passport Office chief executive Paul Hughes admitted on Friday that extra staff were being sent in to try to clear the chaos, which has left thousands of Britons at risk of missing their holidays. A Passport Office spokesman said: ‘We take the security of the passport and the safety of the passport holder’s personal information extremely seriously and we have robust procedures in place to protect personal data. ‘Any suspected breach of security or loss of personal information is investigated thoroughly.’
Investigation launched after passports and documents sent to wrong people .
Shadow Minister demanding full inquiry into backlog of 500,000 documents .
Claims the errors made due to 'extreme pressure' Passport Office is under .
By . Sanchez Manning . The Passport Office was plunged into fresh crisis last night after it emerged that ‘under pressure’ workers are sending out travel documents to the wrong people. A Home Office investigation has been launched after passports, birth certificates and visas were posted to individuals they did not belong to. Shadow Immigration Minister David Hanson said the blunders were ‘a serious breach of security’ and tomorrow he plans to demand a full inquiry into the mistakes. Shadow Immigration Minister David Hanson is calling for an investigation into how many errors have been made because individuals receiving the wrong passport is a 'serious breach' of privacy . Mr Hanson said the likely cause of the errors was the ‘extreme pressure’ that Passport Office staff were now under to clear the backlog of an estimated 500,000 passport applications. He said: ‘I want an investigation into how many errors there are because individuals receiving the wrong passport is a serious breach of their privacy and potentially a serious breach of security. It’s something the Home Office should take very seriously. It’s likely to be because people are working under extreme pressure because of the backlog in passport applications.’ One applicant who recently received the wrong passport was Dale Grinsell, who spoke of his ‘shock’ at opening a letter containing documents belonging to a 17-year-old girl from South-East London. Mr Grinsell, 27, from the West Midlands, had applied this year to the Home Office to renew his passport and received it without any problems. But just a couple of weeks later he received a letter addressed to him that contained the passport belonging to the young woman, with documents including her personal details as well as names and addresses of her next of kin. Mr Grinsell said: ‘We couldn’t believe it. Staring back at us from the photo page was a young girl with long, curly red hair – certainly not me. ‘Luckily we are a law-abiding family, but who knows what could have happened if this had fallen into the wrong hands? ‘You certainly do not expect this from a Government department, and it does make you wonder whether anything of yours has been sent to the wrong place, or ended up in the wrong hands.’ A Passport Office spokesman said the organisation had 'robust procedures' in place to protect individuals' personal data and any suspected breach of privacy or loss of personal information is investigated thoroughly . Mr Grinsell said he returned the passport, but after an initial phone call from Home Office officials to request he send back the documents and the original envelope, he has heard nothing more. In a second case, a nursery worker from Flintshire in Wales told yesterday how she was astounded to receive a letter addressed to her containing the passport, British visa and birth certificate of a Pakistani man living in Lancashire. Sarah Threlfall, 29, received the surprise delivery just a week after her own passport arrived. She said: ‘I couldn’t believe it when I opened it up and found this man’s documents. It’s really concerning as this is important information.’ The mother of two said she has made several attempts to phone the Passport Office about the mix-up, but has been unable to get through. Passport Office chief executive Paul Hughes admitted on Friday that extra staff were being sent in to try to clear the chaos, which has left thousands of Britons at risk of missing their holidays. A Passport Office spokesman said: ‘We take the security of the passport and the safety of the passport holder’s personal information extremely seriously and we have robust procedures in place to protect personal data. ‘Any suspected breach of security or loss of personal information is investigated thoroughly.’
out travel documents to the wrong people. A Home Office investigation has been launched after tomorrow he plans to demand a full inquiry into cause of the errors was the ‘extreme pressure’ clear the backlog of an estimated 500,000 the wrong hands.’ A Passport Office spokesman