Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)

Senators will be familiar with legislation going through. The primary legislation sets out the main principles but often matters of detail are dealt with by empowering the Minister to issue statutory regulations or, in this case, codes of practice. The reason is that there are issues of detail not appropriate to primary legislation, but also there are unforeseen circumstances which are better dealt with either by regulation or code of practice. However, because the code of practice has the force of law, the bank could not act in an arbitrary fashion. Once it applied the code of practice in one set of circumstances, it would have to be consistent because precedent in law would take over. As the code of practice is implemented and applied, to use a layman's term, it firms up and the bank would be wrong in law to act in an arbitrary fashion, and in my view, the bank could be challenged in court if it did.