Ms Francesca McDonagh:

I will respond more broadly on culture and what we are doing and I will ask Mr. Mason to respond on the trends we are seeing and changes made in the branch network.

Obviously how we address this particular issue will be defining in terms of the culture both for our stakeholders and customers, as well as on how our own staff feel we are addressing this - not just because they have had a tracker - but how they feel the bank represents itself in its resolution. It is an incredibly important moment for us, as to how we redress this in the coming weeks until we come to conclusion.

Many things had happened to start to improve the culture before my arrival. For example, complaints management has been consolidated. As opposed to having complaints on different products or different channels in different parts of the banks, for accountability, agility and being customer-focused, it involved having a consolidated and centralised understanding of where complaints are happening. It means that even if one sees a relatively small number of increase, one can investigate or there would be an escalation.

We have also changed how we launch, alter or discontinue a product in order that there is a better consideration of all aspects of the customer impact. That is a particular angle and point learned from the issue that we have at hand. The committee will be aware that the Bank of Ireland has been public in its commitment and investment in transforming its core banking system. That is an ongoing programme. It is one that seeks to improve both the efficiency and the speed, simplicity and digital propositions that we offer our customers over time. These are some of the examples. As I get into my role, and I am four months in, there will be more examples of how we are demonstrating the culture that we want our people and our customers to be proud of at Bank of Ireland.

Specific to the branch network, I will ask Mr. Mason to comment. I am happy to add more comments about how I feel the branch network is an incredibly important part of what Bank of Ireland is today and in the future.