Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Hayes for his statement. It appears he does not like the general scheme too much or does not want legislation to be put in place. There are so many things Mr. Hayes has pointed out that were they all to be implemented, it would nearly negate the legislation altogether. It is certainly important that we discuss them.

The first issue I want to ask about is competitive disadvantage. Will Mr. Hayes explain exactly how the Irish banking sector competes as a whole and how the potential cost of ATMs impacts the sector as a whole? Mr. Hayes is presenting this as something new that the banks are being asked to do in terms of providing reasonable access to cash. Before Covid, some branches were closed down. We saw the impact of that on rural communities. The fact that because people were forced to make digital transactions and non-cash transactions on foot of Covid is, it appears, being exploited to say that people's behaviour has changed and we do not need access to cash anymore. When you go into a branch, there are no longer people to speak to; you are pointed to this or that machine. People are being forced into using machines. That is okay for those who are comfortable doing it, but I have seen elderly people in banks who are absolutely distressed by the way they are being forced to engage with these changes. If we are now saying that providing services within a 10 km limit is too much to ask of banks, I find that difficult to reconcile. Mr. Hayes might speak to that point.