Ms Mary-Elizabeth McMunn:

To take a step back, in terms of the confidentiality provisions that both the Governor and Mr. Cross have spoken to, I appreciate that the Deputy said that we are dodging answering the questions. We have genuinely tried to be as transparent as we can possibly be with the committee through our appearances and the information we have provided to it, as well as the information we have put in the public domain. If the Deputy could allow me a couple of moments, I will explain the principle because it is important. Anyone who works in the Central Bank signs up to section 38AK of the Central Bank Act 1942 as part of their contract, which contains our confidentiality obligations. EU law has confidentiality obligations and secrecy. Why is that so important? It is so important because institutions, stakeholders, other regulators and An Garda Síochána engage and share confidential information with us, which can be market sensitive or time sensitive. We expect them to do so in a proactive way on the basis that they understand that information is not going to be shared onward. If we fell afoul of those confidentiality obligations, first of all it would be a criminal offence for any of us. It also would have an impact on how we fundamentally operate. The dynamic in which we operate with regulated entities is such that there is a kind of trust there that we will hold information confidentially. It is such a fundamental principle in how we operate. If an entity knew that we were going to share confidential information when we should not, we might not get that information in the first instance. I just wished to come back to the principle and why it is so important. So severe is the sanction that it would be a criminal offence if were to share confidential information. We are trying to be as clear as we can and share as much information with committee members as we can. While it is important to be here in terms of our accountability, we must also preserve the confidentiality obligations we are subject to.