Mr. Sorley McCaughey:

The perception is that Ireland's reputation has taken a hammering, rightly or wrongly, and that there are things we can do to address this. We cannot solve the problem unilaterally, but we can go some way towards improving our reputation. There are a number of things Ireland has not yet managed to do to address that reputation, some of which I have highlighted in the presentation which I hope has been circulated to members.

It is also interesting to note that much of this could be solved by the USA. I am sure Mr. Keegan will agree. With the stroke of a pen, the tax regulations governing things like how US companies operate in Ireland could be addressed. This is slightly outside my area of expertise, but I understand it could be done simply. It is not being done, which probably reflects the degree of corporate lobbying to which the President's office is subject.

Deputy Liam Twomey referred to Ireland as a conduit country. That is the accusation correctly levelled at us, but from our point of view, the question is from where the money is coming. Is it coming from countries in the global south? Is it coming from revenue authorities which lack the capacity to police and monitor whether this is legitimate profit shifting out of the country? That this is a conduit country is, in fact, a strong accusation to make, as we do not know from where the money is coming. It could be coming from some of the poorest countries in the world.