Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Like the Chairman and others, I thank the Minister for attending and patiently going through the various questions that have been raised. I understand that we have the right to raise questions and I compliment him on his responses.

I am not sure whether the issue that I want to raise is appropriate at this time. It concerns banking in general in the sense that I, and I am sure that the same is true for everybody else, have received expressions of concern from constituents about the extent to which banks remain available to their customers and the public. We have moved from a situation where during the Celtic tiger era the banks were in their customers' ears advising and encouraging them to go further afield and go overboard, in terms of borrowing and spending unwisely, to a situation where the banks have withdrawn and now exist behind screens. So there are now many closures of banks up and down the country and customers seem to have difficulty accessing a person of authority in the respective banks. I am not certain that such a situation is a good thing and it could be a dangerous practice as time goes by. Is it appropriate to raise this matter with the Minister now and for him to raise this matter with the various banks or should I wait until representatives of the banks are before the committee again?