Mr. Oliver Gilvarry:

To respond to the Senator's question on the Central Bank, the Department is working closely with the Central Bank and IDA Ireland. The Central Bank does not have a competition mandate as this mandate was removed post-2010. On some of the comments made, the Minister and the Central Bank have made it clear that we want substance in relation to entities moving to this jurisdiction. The way the international financial services sector works is that some activities are outsourced, as it were. However, we want substance on the ground to ensure we will not see the creation of empty shells - the phrase used is "brass plates" - in this jurisdiction. We want entities to move here which would be creating substantive and continuous employment. The Central Bank is taking a pragmatic view of applications and we are engaging with entities that are considering moving to Ireland, among other jurisdictions. We are hearing positive reports. The role of the regulator is to challenge firms to put forward a case on how they will deal with concerns the Central Bank may have. In our experience, this has been a constructive process and the Central Bank is engaging proactively with the firms in question. The Department and IDA Ireland are working with the Central Bank to try to attract as much industry as possible. As I stated, this must be industry that puts substance on the ground here.