THE first post-Brexit blue British passport will be issued within a fortnight.
The return of the iconic document was delayed to use up the old burgundy EU versions.
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It comes after The Sun campaigned tirelessly to reinstate Brits’ iconic dark blue passports following the decision to quit the EU.
Just months after the Brexit referendum in 2016, we demanded a pledge from the Government to bring back the old-style document.
Home Secretary Priti Patel praised The Sun’s “True Blue” crusade for their return, saying: “For decades, our dark blue passports were a proud part of our national identity. The Sun has long campaigned to bring them back and we’re delivering on that with a uniquely British design.”
The first blue documents will start to be rolled out in early March. Until June, Brits applying for a passport will not get a choice over whether theirs is blue or burgundy.
It means those issued with a standard ten-year burgundy passport will be stuck with it until 2030. But by the summer, all passports issued will be the famous design.
Burgundy passports were first issued in 1988 after a battle with Brussels. As well as reverting to the old colour, the new design features embossed floral emblems of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
But the contract to produce them was awarded to a French firm and it is believed they are being made in a factory in Poland.
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THE SUN SAYS
THREE cheers for our new blue passports. They are a welcome restoration of a powerful symbol of sovereignty.
Most Brits consider themselves British, not European, citizens.
So EU-issued burgundy passports always rubbed us up the wrong way.
At last, a real sign that Britain is OUT.
