Mr. Michael Torpey:

I believe ... I believe that Mr. McCarthy clarified numbers in relation to loan-to-deposit ratio yesterday, that the true loan-to-deposit ratio was lower than that, but, leaving that aside, Deputy, I think the key to understanding the financing of the Ulster Bank balance sheet is the position that RBS Group adopted, where it would provide the funding and capital, the treasury needs of Ulster Bank as it went forward. In treasury terms, loan-to-deposit ratio is a useful metric but has very great weaknesses, as has been seen in many instances, nationally and internationally. The key ...the key issue in managing the balance sheet is stability of funding and for so long as RBS Group was ... gave the assurance and delivered upon that assurance, that it would meet the funding and capital needs of Ulster Bank Group, the stability of funding was assured and, indeed, you know, long after I left, when it was tested in the crisis, it's reassuring to see that RBS Group, indeed, did stand over those assurances.