"If there's a loophole, we would expect to avail of it as well, " said Tattan. "We wouldn't treat it lightly. We would expect to be treated the same."

The Quinn Group claimed it would be exempt from making Euro160m in risk equalisation payments to VHI over the next three years because it was basically starting a new business.

The payments demand prompted Bupa to announce that it would withdraw from Ireland. VHI immediately challenged the Quinn Group claim.

The minister for health, Mary Harney, said she would act on the recommendation of the Health Insurance Authority.

Tattan said he was also eagerly awaiting the outcome of investigations into the structure of the Irish health insurance market by the European Commission, as well as the recommendations of the Competition Authority in Ireland.

"The bigger issue here is that the regulatory environment is a disaster, " he said.

The competition authority report is widely expected to recommend the break-up of VHI into separate companies and the integration of the Health Insurance Authority into the Financial Regulator.

The swoop by Quinn Group was broadly welcomed in political and business circles, as it secures Bupa's 450,000 customers and 300 jobs in Fermoy, Co Cork.

Customers responded favourably as well. Bupa's former Fermoy call centre logged 12,000 calls the day after the deal was announced, one of the company's busiestever days.