BKIR.L Regulatory News (BKIR)

21 Jul 2006 10:13

Bank of Ireland(Governor&Co)21 July 2006 Bank of Ireland Annual General Court 2006 Governor's Statement Addressing the Annual General Court today (21 July 2006) Richard Burrows,Governor said: "In 2005/2006 Bank of Ireland Group achieved an improvedperformance and delivered strong returns for our stockholders. "Underlying earnings per share increased by 16%. The total dividend recommendedto stockholders today is 15% higher than last year. The improved performance isbased on strong organic growth in our main markets, effective implementation ofa clear business strategy and progress ahead of target on our cost reductionprogramme. "Overall, the global economic and demographic backdrop provides a positivetrading environment for the Group and we expect this to continue. In Ireland,strong economic growth, a growing population, significant job creation andrising incomes are the factors underpinning our confidence while the UK economycontinues to grow and provides a significant business opportunity for the Group. "Looking ahead, this continuing strength of the economies in our main markets,the improved growth in 2005/06, the growing benefits of a sustained period ofinvestment in people and new capabilities, and significant progress on theimplementation of our Strategic Transformation Programme give us confidence forthe future. "I am happy to report that we had a strong trading performance for the firstquarter of our year and this confirms our confidence in the guidance we providedat our recent Preliminary results announcement. We expect to deliver low tomid-teens percentage earnings growth this year". Finally, the Governor thanked Mary Redmond, Roy Bailie and Mike Hodgkinson fortheir commitment to the work of the Court and its committees. All three retirefrom the Court at the end of today's meeting. Mary and Roy have served asDirectors since 1994 and 1999 respectively and Mike Hodgkinson was appointed tothe Court in 2004 in his capacity as Chairman of the Post Office Ltd in the UK. End Contact:Dan Loughrey, Head of Group Corporate Communications - 00 353 1 604 3833Geraldine Deighan, Head of Group Investor Relations - 00 353 1 604 3501 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange