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

I thank our witnesses for coming forward and giving us of their time. I also thank the members and staff for their contributions.

This is important legislation and it has to be even-handed. We have all been aware of situations where things went wrong that should not have gone wrong, and where perhaps we should have been more alert. Notwithstanding all of that, we still have to have a balance and that balance has to be on the basis of a democracy. We live in a democracy. We are elected by the people directly, which is not applicable in all other European countries, or in the United States or Canada either. There is a distinct difference in that people who are not elected by anybody can gain public office. I know people can point to exceptions in this country too but they are exceptions, whereas in other countries they are not. Those people are in the position of being in business and enterprise, and are private citizens, or whatever the case may be, and they are suddenly sprung into a pivotal position that gives them power and authority that goes alongside and supersedes that of the public representative. It is something I do not agree with at all, now that I think of it, but it is there.

We in public life often have situations where a meeting may be used by some lobbyists, with a large group of people put into the front row whereas the manipulation is done in the background, and it may be difficult for a public representative to find out where the pressure is coming from and from whom, and so on. I have been there several times and I have been the victim several times, but we will not go into that and I am not looking for compensation, incidentally.

I again thank everyone for their attendance. The meeting will adjourn until 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, 25 May, when we will meet in private session in advance of public session at 1:30 p.m., when we will meet representatives of the Financial Services Union and later with representatives of Electric Ireland and Energia, possibly, to discuss the impact on customers and the banking arrangements as a result of the withdrawal of Ulster Bank and KBC from the Irish market.