Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Durkan for tabling the question. Notwithstanding the Minister's response - the narrowing of the gap is very welcome - we are subject to competition in Ireland and that has been our biggest issue because we are such a small country. There has been much talk about banking union, which would have an impact upon the sort of products Deputy Durkan referred to in his question, but also for insurance and assurance. Probably one of the biggest issues at the moment, of which I am sure the Minister is only too aware is liability, in particular for the likes of bouncy castles and all the rest of it. With an open market, we can see other jurisdictions bringing products into Ireland that are not currently available. Notwithstanding the narrowing, as the Deputy has said, there are opportunities for us to be vigilant as to the price volatility.

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