Mr. Brendan McDonagh:

No. If the Deputy thinks about it, when we acquired those assets, we acquired them at yields of approximately 7% in 2009. The yields went all the way out to 9% and are now coming back towards 7%. Effectively, the market is beginning to correct to an equilibrium. We are not holding assets here until yields get down to 2% in Grafton Street, which they did at the peak. That is not our strategy. Our strategy is orderly and phased and is to have enough in the market where there is enough demand.

The recovery story in Ireland has been very important. Fiscally, the Government is staying on track. It is getting out of the bailout programme and getting back into the bond markets. This has been crucially important in terms of the international investors we meet. It is important to them that Ireland is a stable economy, has a stable government and is meeting its fiscal targets. It is doing this, which has led to a lot of people, in a low interest environment internationally, considering the situation here. They can get something like a 1% yield in the US, or get ten-year German bonds at close to that. People are looking for a yield and if they do not invest in government bonds, they want to invest in real assets, which are a big protector against inflation. That is why people are interested. Ireland is seen as a recovery story and that is why they are coming here.

The Deputy asked whether NAMA should continue after 2020. That is not how the board thinks. It is still working towards 2020. This completely presses me and the executive team. We try to ensure that we are continually on target towards 2020. The rental strategy has been driven through asset management, maximising the income on the assets pending their sale. We have 10,000 residential units, mainly apartment blocks in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway, rented out and we have another 4,000 offered up for social housing, which will hopefully be rented out also. Over time, we will sell down that portfolio. That has always been part of the strategy, but in the meantime we wanted to prove they could generate an income. If one has an income generating asset, one will get a lot more for it than for a non-income generating asset. It will attract more buyers. There is nothing unusual in our strategy or change of strategy. Selling the assets was always in the plan, but it is a question of how we do it over time.