Absent that, I suspect we may have had a fair bit more trouble containing inflation. But events being as they were, inflation came down pretty quickly and we have achieved something pretty close to 2½ per cent on average. In fact, we have been achieving the inflation target for over two decades.
In this context it is timely that I have been offered this opportunity, at the start of my time in Ireland, to discuss the evolving nature of financial supervision at the Central Bank.