Mr. Brian Cowen:

Obviously the regulatory authorities were interfacing with the individual Irish banks all the time, and I keep emphasising that they are independent. I never politically interfered in that work. I always asked my officials, they kept me briefed on what was going on, and there was a view that, you're saying capitalisation isn't relevant, but it is relevant if there's an exposure that turns out to be crystallised - have you got capital as a buffer to deal with it? Yes.