Mr. Richie Boucher:

In the first instance, Bank of Ireland looks at the long term. We want our customers to remain with us because they want to do so, not because they do not have a choice. Customers will always have a choice and competitors can emerge at any stage. Bank of Ireland has been around for 220 years and expects to be around for at least another 200. To do this, we must provide competitive options for customers that are commercially sensible.

We have seen banks come and go in this country whose business models were not sustainable, and the customers have been left stranded. Our products must be competitive and commercially sensible and sustainable in order for us to continue to provide them, and to continue having investment. As every business person does, we must have a long-term objective. Ours is to ensure that we have more customers with Bank of Ireland at the end of this year than we had at the start of this year. That can only happen by providing products and services that our customers want and need.