7.— (1) Before issuing a passport to a person, the Minister shall be satisfied—

(a) that the person is an Irish citizen, and

(b) as to the identity of the person.

(2) The Minister may require an applicant for a passport to provide such information as the Minister may require for the purposes of the application and to produce to him or her such documents as he or she considers necessary or expedient to enable him or her to perform the functions of the Minister under this Part.

(3) The Minister may require that information furnished to him or her under this section shall be accompanied by a statutory declaration made or affidavit sworn by the applicant concerned to the effect that, to the best of the applicant’s knowledge and belief, the information is correct in every material respect and that the applicant has taken all reasonable steps to ensure the accuracy of the information.