a slow, credible and predictable increase in emission taxes raises long run fossil fuel price expectations, increases the benefits of switching, and raises the incentives for businesses developing emission - saving innovations. we have control of our own carbon pricing – and we are on the right path – but international agreement in this area will be vital for global decarbonisation in the coming years. adaptation in the real economy domestic adaptation, however, is within our control. this means different things to different sectors, and different sectors will understand their own climate vulnerabilities and specific solutions, from farmers switching crops and investing in water management, to domestic manufacturers diversifying their supply chains across more locations. such solutions lower risk from external events, increase profitability and protect jobs. in aggregate, adaptation improves the resilience of the wider economy to climate change, which also lowers risk to the financial system. ireland will have more frequent and severe flood events over the coming decades. flood mapping by the office of public works has increased our understanding of this risk over the last decade. 12 households, businesses and public authorities now have access to more granular information on flood likelihood both today and over the next century. such risks are relatively high here. for example, recent estimates from the european central bank show the irish financial system ’ s exposure to flood risk ( domestic and foreign, combined ) in the commercial sector is among the highest in the euro area. 13 where risks are deemed too high, properties may end up being uninsurable, which has knock - on implications for the riskiness of mortgages held by banks. there is evidence that some lenders are already considering these implications. and we have seen, albeit overseas, lenders withdrawing from granting mortgages to properties deemed to be at a high risk of flooding. 14 while global decarbonisation must be the first line of attack to lower physical risk growth, we can also protect our households and businesses by investing in adaptation measures such as flood defences. first and foremost, flood defences protect communities and livelihoods from severe hardship. but they also maintain individual household and business asset values, increasing their economic and financial resilience. since 2010, €600m has been invested in 55 flood protection schemes to the benefit of over 13, 000 properties. 15 additional schemes, for which funding has been ring - fenced under the national development plan, will protect an additional 23, 000 properties by 2030. 16 progress has already been made, but the clock is ticking and the

not considered a scenario of a ‘ hard ’ brexit with no transition period. more work is required to be prepared for this plausible scenario. with regard to brexit related authorisations and approvals, we will continue to prioritise our authorisation activity and continue to deliver on our commitment of being transparent, predictable and consistent in our approach to authorisations and material business changes. where brexit has a material impact on business strategy and business models, we will challenge firms to ensure they appropriately address associated risks. we will continue to both operate to and influence european norms of supervision. we have engaged effectively within the ssm and with the esas and have been influential in the decisions being taken on supervisory stances for the many thorny issues that brexit is causing. we will continue to dedicate our most senior and experienced supervisory and regulatory experts to work on brexit – as befits one of our highest priorities. we have approved an expansion in the regulatory staff in the central bank to ensure we have the resources to both authorise and supervise new entrants or changes to existing firms. we have put in processes that are transparent, predictable and consistent. firms that are engaging with us will find us open, engaged and pragmatic. but they will not find that we are willing to compromise on the need for governance and control arrangements to be commensurate with the size, scale and complexity of operations. ( iii ) meaningful progress in the recoverability and resolvability of firms there has been significant progress in recovery and resolution planning in the last two to three years. however, more needs to be done by regulated firms to develop credible and executable recovery plans, and to address impediments to resolution – including the raising of mrel for banks, and addressing operational continuity issues. the absence of a resolution framework for insurance firms is a concern, and will be a focus of our engagement in european forums. ( iv ) continuing to enhance our supervisory approach 5 / 7 bis central bankers'speeches i expect all of you to be seeking to both continuously improve your firms as well as responding and anticipating the changing environment we operate in. i expect the same in the central bank. we will continue to enhance our supervisory approach, including the use of the data and analysis ( reflecting the huge growth in regulatory and non - regulatory information that we need to consider as part of our supervision ). ( v ) resourcing and finally, res