Ms Francesca McDonagh:

I will address that question more broadly. The Deputy referred to poorer or more vulnerable customers. To be clear, students and older customers are not charged. The charges also reflect the difference in cost between a contactless transaction and a PIN or chip verification. It is not necessarily an apples-to-apples comparison to compare fees and charges, whether for a transaction or a mortgage, in the Republic of Ireland with those in our UK business. There are different dynamics, positionings and segments and a quite distinct set of charges and infrastructure associated with payments which mean that it is not a like-for-like comparison.

We generate business income. The Deputy referred to our business income in 2018. It resulted from a variety of areas, including corporate banking transactions. We are the only bank in Ireland that provides assurance. The sources of the income included our growing insurance business and other aspects of the bank's overall income. The amount referenced by the Deputy does not solely result from fees and charges on accounts.