Ms Francesca McDonagh:

I will be quick in my response. We have one public-interest director who sits on our board. The decision to close branches and enter into the post office joint venture and maintain 169 branches was a management recommendation to the board, which the board supported. That was an overall board decision. In terms of engagement with the Minister of Finance or the Department, I think the Minister is on the record as having said before the Dáil that these commercial decisions are being made by boards and management of private companies and are a reflection of the wider challenges the banking sector is facing, not only in Ireland but also internationally. I think there is a recognition there that we are adapting to the changing customer environment as part of our decision on branches. In my engagement with the Department, it was particularly interested in the offering of services through An Post, which was seen as a positive alternative service to all of our customers across a larger network of longer operating hours.