I wish to return to the issue of the emerging duopoly in our banking sector. A local businessman said to me recently that the two banks will do what they want and I had to correct him and say they are already doing what they want. In theory, we have supervision from the Central Bank, but in reality those two banks have been allowed to do what they want, and it will hurt rural economies. It is already hurting them. The supervision from the Central Bank is supposed to prevent what has happened, but the banks have pulled out of many communities and continue to do so. There is no understanding of the communities or their economies in which the banks operate. Has the Governor of the Central Bank been in Ireland for the past three years? Is there any link between the Central Bank and supervision of those banks? If not, they are bound to take advantage of the fact they now have an effective duopoly in Ireland. That is all brought about by the policy of the Minister's Department. Is the Minister happy with the supervisory regime in place for the banks, given the emerging duopoly?

We cannot stop a bank leaving if it decides to leave. The Central Bank cannot do so and the Government cannot do so, and the Deputy knows that. Looking at the supervisory measures that are in place, a central bank cannot stop a bank if it decides it is going to close a branch, and I think Deputy McNamara is aware of that.

Am I happy with the supervisory efforts of the Central Bank in recent years? Yes, I am. Proof of that is that, despite the many challenges we faced during the pandemic, this time around our banks were not part of the economic and financial difficulty we faced. In fact, they played a role in delivering solutions that were needed at a very difficult time, and I believe that the way in which our banks were regulated leading up to that point played a vital role in that.