Westpac CEO Gail Kelly took a conciliatory stance in her appearance at the Senate's banking competition inquiry in Sydney, on Friday, without conceding too much ground to banking critics.She described Westpac as "broadly positive" about the banking competition package announced last month by Treasurer Wayne Swan. She specifically approved the introduction of covered bonds - which is expected to advantage the Big Four banks - and also the support for the residential mortgage-backed securities market.And she said Westpac had to communicate better with customers and the community about recent changes such as the rising cost of offshore funding.But she cautioned that neither the planned ban on mortgage exit fees nor the proposed legislation outlawing price signalling would increase competition in banking.Kelly also deftly underscored one of the problems of the proposed price signalling law: asked about her expectations for rate rises, she said she did not want to price-signal.Westpac, unlike the Australian Bankers Association and other groups, has not mounted an all-out offensive against the price signalling law. Instead, its submission to Treasury on the proposed law supports one of its two key clauses: a ban on public price disclosures made for the purpose of substantially lessening competition.In her opening statement, and at other points in the hearing, she repeatedly stressed Westpac's view that Australia's banking system was competitive, strong and stable.She also implied that Westpac's various brands - Westpac, St George, BankSA and Rams - provided choice within the market, saying they attracted different types of customers.Government should "level the playing field between bank deposits and other currently more tax-favoured savings opportunities", she said.Despite a generally conciliatory tone, Kelly had a tense exchange with the National Party's Senator John Williams, who expressed dissatisfaction at the $1000 exit fee Westpac would impose on him if he took his loan elsewhere. Kelly pointed out that the fee is waived after the first four years of a loan.