Mr. Liam McLoughlin:

The bank has 250 branches at present and we envisage retaining that footprint. We are investing millions of euro in the fit of these branches and the capability within branches in terms of in-service technology as well as online and mobile services. We are freeing up branches to provide a greater degree of high quality service advice to our customers and to work with customers in difficulty on a face-to-face basis. The feedback from our customers indicates that our footprint is important in allowing them to engage with us on a face-to-face basis regarding new mortgages and cases of difficulty.

Our focus is on reducing the cost to serve by looking to local businesses to support the branch footprint. We will merge certain branches in urban areas where they are located side by side or very close to each other. We also plan to open several outlets in the coming months, including two before the end of the year. We always keep the footprint under review. We examine our locations to ensure they are optimal and if they are not optimal we will seek to relocate. Our focus at present is on our own footprint rather than considering an expansion into other footprints.