Professor Patrick Honohan:

We have been increasing the pressure on and engagement with the banks steadily over the past 15 months and we will continue to do so. This will change as the banks build, step-by-step, the elements they need to deliver on this. Is it possible to have a one line target, whereby the banks should have solved 73% of the third category of debtors outlined by the Chairman? We are setting targets for the banks but we do not want to rely solely on one high-level target which could reach the headlines of all the newspapers, because any high-level single target will be simplistic and could end up getting the banks to focus on its delivery in the simplest way and they will not solve the worst problems. It is a complex situation and we want the banks to ensure they are delivering the products required in the quantity needed to the various categories of people. We are absolutely committed to this; it is the most important domestic policy issue at present.