Mr. Des Carville:

We recognise its unique characteristics. Credit unions differ from banks and other financial institutions. I need to make it clear that the Minister and the Department are very supportive of the sector. The Deputy also asked about tiered regulation. As I said previously, I cannot speak for the Central Bank. I acknowledge the statement made by the Central Bank as the regulator to the effect that it is open to reviewing tiered regulation. The Department's position is ad idemwith that. The implementation group is examining tiered regulation. It has been established for a one-year period, but that can be extended if needs be. As I mentioned earlier, we expect the implementation group to report on a modular basis. As Ms Aherne has explained, the first topic the group is looking at is the section 35 lending restrictions. The group will then quickly move on to examine the issue of tiered regulation. I expect it to report on that issue in the coming months. We are moving as quickly as we can. This is a complex area. Those who are regulated would always like the regulations to be changed more quickly than the regulator typically wants to move. That is a fact in all regulated industries. We are moving as fast as we can in this regard.