Mr. William Beausang:

In terms of the role of the Department of Finance on the banking regulation side, we had no role in raising issues/concerns around the stability of the banks with the Central Bank because that was their job and they were an independent Central Bank.

Once you get into a space where the Department is encroaching on the independence of a Central Bank, or the independence of the supervisor, you're getting into, sort of, potentially quite difficult territory so, I mean, the responsibilities are defined in legislation. I mean, as a civil servant, you know, we operate within our legal powers and I know you're ... there's a broader issue about the role of the Department of Finance and I'd obviously accept and acknowledge what other witnesses have said and what the Wright report said about the broader role of the Department and looking at the economy in terms of macroeconomic management, but in terms, specifically, of assessing financial stability conditions in the bank, that was the Central Bank's role and we had all the evidence, as far as we were concerned-----