Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

It was at the 2010 AGM of the Irish League of Credit Unions that the CUSO - credit union services organisation - or shared services idea was approved by the member credit unions. They had obviously done a lot of research about the idea of shared services, shared branches and developing the attributes that would be necessary to promote a network approach. The amendments I and my colleagues have put forward concern these types of service - for example, internal audits, risk and compliance management, HR, marketing, research, procurement and debt collection.

One can understand why, following the passage of this Bill, credit union members would want to develop this type of facility. However, one of the issues I raised earlier was the lack of a detailed regulatory impact analysis of the additional costs that will be imposed on credit unions by the passage of this Bill. Compliance management, risk management, HR, marketing, research and procurement are all areas in which there will be obvious economies of scale and sharing of costs, which could be advantageous to the credit union movement if the CUSO idea of shared services is allowed to proceed. As one response to the far tighter regulation which I critiqued in my first contribution earlier, and given that the Government has not provided a detailed impact analysis of the Bill, there would seem to be enormous merit in proceeding down this road. The Irish League of Credit Unions is also of this view. It would, of course, be a historic development for the credit union movement. If electronic banking can be developed in branches across the country and throughout Northern Ireland, we would be talking about a real alternative for ordinary people to the present banking network, which has failed us so badly in the current crisis. There is much merit in incorporating these carefully chosen lines which the Deputies and I would like to see inserted in the Bill. I ask the Minister to accept this.

We have had discussion with the Commission on Credit Unions and there is a recommendation that we revisit this issue in legislation. This is perhaps the opportunity for the Minister to examine the matter. I accept it would be another remarkable milestone in the history of the credit union movement in this country but, given the types of constraint under which credit unions operate in terms of liquidity, solvency and assets, it would also be another important economic tool and facility for all the people of this island who are members. I urge the Minister of State to accept the amendments.

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