Mr. John Moran:

Essentially, the job I came back to do was in some ways marked by the troika programme and what actually needed to be done. There was one main objective in respect of the job in hand, although back in 2010 that was not necessarily the way of measuring it, because it did not materialise until later in that year when I was asked to become involved in thinking about the banking system while I was at the Central Bank. In some respects the question was about when we would be able to say that the country was back in the markets again and that we had exited the troika programme. Perhaps it would have been a difficult and a different decision had we gone for a precautionary credit line at the end of last year. I suppose I am pleased to say that we did not and it has worked out and therefore now I can make this decision with a free scope.

Perhaps other things had to be done but the other job that I had to do during that period was, having accepted the role of Secretary General, to identify based on my experience and the discussions I was having with others - there are references to this in the report - what I thought could get fixed on a parallel programme, and to put in place a programme to allow that to happen.

No one has the single truth in respect of what needs to get done. The best way to do this is to hand it over to someone else who can improve further what needs to happen next. Let us consider where we have come from, even in the past four years, compared to the type of thing that we discussed the first time I appeared before this committee. We have liquidated IBRC and the State is back in the markets. I could not say it in my earlier statement to the staff yesterday morning because it was too sensitive, but the restructuring plan of AIB has been agreed and the restructuring plan of Bank of Ireland has been agreed. We are significantly down in State ownership. A series of other things have happened in that respect. As I mentioned already, it was important for me during the course of last year to try to identify what needed to happen for the future and, in effect, lay out an analysis of where we, as a team, thought things should go. This was in effect set out in the medium-term economic strategy at the end of the year. That now gives to my successor and others in the system a direction of travel that comes after the troika programme. It clearly sets out where we should be going and how we should be working to the next phase of the recovery of the economy.