Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Independent)
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I appreciate that it is not a foregone conclusion, although it would be most peculiar for any commercial entity to purchase a platform and not have a mortgage book behind that platform already working away. That would be a bizarre situation. While I accept that it is not a foregone conclusion, it is highly likely. One will not buy a platform without bringing the mortgage book in with it. One will not have the whole back end of a retail banking operation sitting there waiting for the first few mortgages to gain approval. One will have a mortgage book on which one's staff will work at the back end and one will add to and subtract from it all the time. Am I correct? There is no way anyone will buy a banking platform and not attach an existing loan book to it. Would Mr Newton agree?