Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Bhí mé ag éisteacht leis an díospóireacht níos luaithe agus, mar a dúirt an Teachta Ó Snodaigh, bhí sé suimiúil éisteacht le Teachtaí ó achan páirtí ag tabhairt barúlacha faoin Bhille seo agus ag léiriú go bhfuil siad ar fad buartha faoi.

Sinn Féin supports strong, effective and appropriate regulation for the credit union sector. While there are many positive aspects to the Bill, there are a number of others which concern us. As Sinn Féin's spokesman on finance, an Teachta Pearse Doherty, has indicated, we will table a number of amendments to the Bill on Committee and Report Stages.

Credit unions have a distinctive, not-for-profit ethos that needs to be protected and encouraged. This should be the position of the Government. Credit unions are an integral part of every community. Across the entire island they are a truly national social movement. Their ethos is based on values of community, voluntarism, solidarity and social enhancement. They keep people away from moneylenders and make money available to those not in a position to deal with the banks. In many cases, this involves just small sums of money that can be paid back in small repayments.

In September I met the representatives of the Kilsaran-Castlebellingham branch and the Dunleer branch and the manager of the mid-Louth group of credit unions. I have also been in contact with Collon Credit Union and the parish of Darver credit union. Many of those I met have serious concerns about the Bill. They are not against change, but they have concerns which I share. There are concerns that some of the measures agreed to by the Commission on Credit Unions have not been included in the Bill. Why not? The sharing of services among credit unions should be supported in order that members could avail of a wider range of services. The Bill should also enable credit unions to offer electronic payment services and accounts.

A particular fear of some of those I met is that some proposals will make the closure of smaller credit unions inevitable, leading to the removal of another vital service in rural Ireland. There are concerns that some of the Government's proposals will undermine the ethics and principles of the credit union movement as a democratically based and community owned service. Credit unions are not banks and should not be treated as such. They did not help to cause the economic crisis and the directors do not draw huge pensions or receive huge bonuses or salaries.

The proposal to apply the Central Bank legislation from 1942 -2011 to credit unions was not considered, even by the Commission on Credit Unions. This will have far reaching implications for credit unions. There are similar concerns about applying the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Bill 2011 to them. The concern is that this will undermine the right of appeal to the Irish financial services appeals tribunal, as recommended in the commission's report and included in the Credit Union Bill. As some of my cairde have said, changes to the appointment and selection of directors will militate against real member and community ownership of credit unions. Term limits for directors will remove a wealth of knowledge and experience from the movement.

There are positive aspects of the Bill, but it needs to be amended. We want to see strong, effective and appropriate regulation. The credit union leaders I met want to see the same thing happen. This is necessary for their survival and the future well-being of the communities they serve. I hope the Government will take on board some of the suggestions others in Sinn Féin and I have made.

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