Mr. Bernard Sheridan:

We oversee the charges by applying the section 149 criteria in full to every institution that seeks approval. That applies to AIB and Bank of Ireland. We are particularly cognisant of their dominant position when we assess the charges they propose.

The Chairman has also asked what we are doing to encourage more institutions to come into the wider market. It is important that we have a stable market that is prudentially well regulated. We are doing this, in addition to protecting consumers. We are fulfilling our broad role in terms of proper regulation, financial stability and consumer protection. That should lead to people looking at our market and deciding they would like to get into it. Unfortunately, we cannot force them to do so.