Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I understand what the Minister of State has said about framework agreements between the credit unions and how this legislation will apply between credit unions. My issue is with the proposed new section 51A(2)(a), which states "the receiving credit union may provide the service in respect of which the referral is made to the member concerned". That is important because credit unions do not want to lose custom. They do not want customers to go and get student loans, car loans or holiday loans from another credit union just because a credit union cannot provide that one service. I understand the concept and importance of that. Perhaps there is no issue.

The Minister of State mentioned the importance of a review. We are familiar with the mortgage market. Many people who go to banks will now go to credit unions. They may be referred to a credit union for the provision of a service, that is, to get a mortgage to purchase a home. They will only be deemed a member of that credit union for that service, to get a mortgage, and will remain a member for as long as the mortgage exists. As we know, as years go on, people may tap into their mortgages. They may want a top-up, which is not a new mortgage but is a release of equity. That cannot be done with another institution because there is already a burden on the customer's property with the credit union. Such a top-up would be a separate service. Would that individual have to go back to the original credit union or be referred for a top-up?

It is clear that is for the service referred to. Maybe there is no way round that. I agree with the sentiments about making sure the local credit union's custom is not lost but people are also able to avail of the benefits of the credit union movement. I am giving an example like that and there may be many other examples.

This section could be very specific and I am not sure if a framework agreement can deal with that. Maybe it can deal with loans, any future top-ups and so on. We need to make sure it is as seamless as possible and that the legislation does not create an unnecessary burden where people have to go back to their original credit union and ask to be referred back for one wee bit, because the original referral was for a specific service, the service has now got a little wider, and now, due to the legislation, they need to go back again and get referred. The legislation is enabling legislation and we have not looked at what that process means for an individual. I am not even sure if that means an individual has to open a new account with another credit union or whether the initial documentation he or she has with the original credit union will suffice for the referred-to credit union or whether that individual has to go through the whole compliance procedure again. This is the Leas-Chathaoirleach's favourite issue, knowing your customer and all of that.