Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. I mentioned already that there is what is called headroom of up to €700 million that the credit union movement can invest in these housing projects. It is a question of them agreeing the structure of the special purpose vehicle if they choose to go down that route and getting clearance from the Central Bank of Ireland when there is a detailed proposal.

Today I met representatives of 30 credit unions in an organisation called Cultivate, which provides loans for the agri sector. They mentioned restrictions on borrowing but the Central Bank has made it crystal clear that no credit union in Ireland has gone to it recently seeking to extend the limits they are allowed. None of them has reached the individual lending limits to date. I encourage credit unions to put proposals to the Central Bank as quickly as they can. I hope the Central Bank can deal with those applications for special purpose vehicles and the associated regulatory matters in a very timely manner.

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