Mr. Nigel Nagarajan:

It is an interesting question. Most of the competences are national competences. It is true that as a result of the crisis some of the competences are being moved to the European level but we are at an initial stage of this process and it will be a learning-by-doing process.

In terms of what the AGS says about the issue we have raised, Senator Byrne correctly states that the AGS calls for a balanced approach to foreclosures. That is something that is stressed - for example, the establishment of adequate protections for the family home is something we recommend for member states.

It is hard for me to go into the details of financial regulation in individual member states because that is not really the purpose of the AGS strategy, which is to provide general guidance in terms of policies for member states. One also must recognise that member states have an incentive not to cede their existing competences. Senator Byrne's question was about what more should be done at a European level, but from a member state perspective, member states are keen to keep as many of their competences, particularly in the area of financial regulation, at a national level.