Mr. Maurice Crowley:

I will only answer the cheque book question. The volume of cheques being processed in the country is falling by 10% per annum at the moment. Obviously, some of that was the impact of the recession of recent years but in general, the volume is falling. Do I expect to be out of the business of cheques in five years' time or a decade from now? I doubt it. The volume will be lower but we will still be processing cheques. Banks are putting in cheque processing equipment at the front of branches to try to make the process more efficient. There will still be cheques.

We are keen to see a further movement towards electronic payments but people will decide that based on the cost, efficiency, payment terms, etc. That will determine how slowly or quickly we move to electronic payments. Cheques will not be gone. I will pass the question on EIB money over to the representatives of Bank of Ireland and Ulster Bank.