Mr. John O'Beirne:

Once they are in that process. There is an element before that where it is a more discursive engagement with people. Sometimes, we find that people want to buy a home but may not have saved a deposit. They may need to manage either their incomes or outgoings in a slightly different way. We call that a "getting mortgage ready" process. We have other elements outside mortgages to help with that. We have a mortgage saver product so that as people save towards that deposit, we pay a good rate of interest and a bonus to narrow that journey. When I look through all the customer research we have, the two things that come back from all customers consistently are whether they will be able to get a mortgage and whether they will be able to manage those mortgage repayments as they come through.

The help-to-buy scheme was launched in October 2016 and it has had a very positive impact on the market. When one looks at the mix of housing coming through, the number of first-time buyers as a proportion of the mortgage market is starting to increase dramatically and is now just over 50%. Within that, the proportion of new homes for the help-to-buy scheme, which plays a very viable part, has also started to expand. It is due for completion later this year and Bank of Ireland would certainly welcome any extension of it. It is helpful for borrowers to meet that deposit requirement by way of a tax rebate.