Mr. Mario Nava:

The Deputy asked two questions. On the first question, the restructuring plan is discussed with the competition department. While discussing the restructuring plan, the competition department takes into account all the rules we have. There is no disconnect between the two. There is an apportioning of responsibilities. Each department is responsible for its own areas but we obviously take into account what the other departments do. It is not possible to have a restructuring plan which does not take into account the rules we have made.

The second question was on the politicisation of decisions. As I stated, the Commission brings a draft proposal, a draft capital requirement, to the table of the Council and Parliament. Let me cite a concrete example. The last draft capital requirement - the capital regulation requirement that is in application today - was brought to the table of the Council and Parliament in July 2011 and finally adopted in April 2013. The process lasted a little less than two years, which was quite a fast process for a document of 1,000 pages. The discussion in the Parliament and Council is done by those who are entitled to make law, who I understand are the legislators. I understand they are the political masters, the elected and appointed persons who make legislation. There may be an interpretation that one or other aspect is excessively political but, as a European citizen, I find it democratically correct that we have a clear process of adopting a law and it is adopted by political people.

The members of the committee are political people who have all been elected. They are the legislative power and they make legislation. I do not find it particularly strange that politicians make legislation. Actually, I think it is their duty to make legislation. In doing so, they may introduce political considerations because that is exactly the area in which politicians are involved. Let me give a concrete example. When the capital regulation requirement, CRR, went through the Council and Parliament, given the particularly difficult economic situation, the Council and Parliament introduced a rebate for the banks that were lending to small and medium enterprises. A rebate of about 25%, which was not in our proposal, was given on the back of a particularly difficult economic situation and the need to sustain the credit flow to small and medium enterprises. Was that a political decision? Yes, it was a political decision. Was it something the Council and Parliament had the right to do? As a European citizen, I would answer "Yes". I must also say that, as a European citizen, I take comfort in the fact that the politicians looked not only at the piece of paper we brought to the table but also looked outside the window and saw what were the needs.