Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

The volume of those exiting the market is not being matched by the entries and those left behind, which is key for consumers. In many cases, they are not like for like services. This is not a criticism of the witnesses. That logic is nearly a white flag being raised with regard to the future of the banking market. At the end of this, there will be hundreds of towns and villages with no bank or banking services and hundreds of thousands of people, including farmers, small businesspeople and families, having many of the banking services that were available to them disappear. That has a significant effect on the functioning of the economy and society.

Is there any light at the end of the tunnel with the macroprudential rules? The witnesses mentioned the massive numbers who are collateral damage of the mortgage distress from the last crash. It is incredible that we still have people suffering from mortgage distress at the same time as we have a new housing crisis due to prices. These people are left over from the last crash, even though we are at a new peak already. Is there a light at the end of the tunnel with a reduction in interest rates here compared with other European countries and a healthier operating environment for banks in the State?