Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The issue of the ATMs has been discussed but this is a slightly different amendment. It is tabled under section 13 but it is in fact alien to that section, which deals with reserves. I will deal with the substance of the amendment, however.

Credit unions already have access to payments infrastructure through providers such as Bank of Ireland, AIB and BNP. The Irish League of Credit Unions is seeking to enter this market on a commercial basis through its credit union service organisations for payments, CUSOP, project. The latest reports of the league set out the details of the project, which would require authorisation from the Central Bank. This is a commercial project and credit unions will have to decide for themselves whether to get involved. I do not propose to accept the amendment as it could be misinterpreted as a statement of support from the Government for one potential service provider in the commercial market.

It is not a question of electronic banking because credit unions can already provide such services and several credit unions operate ATMs. Our earlier discussion focused on how the Bill will assist credit unions in offering debit cards as part of their services. This is a wider issue relating to the Irish League of Credit Unions getting involved in an area of banking and seeking support for its activities.