Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the two previous speakers for allowing me one minute to speak. I too acknowledge the magnificent role the credit unions play in our local communities. I thank them for the bridging loans they give people who travel to the North of Ireland to get their cataracts, hips, knees and all of those things done. Credit unions facilitate those people who travel to get that necessary intervention or risk losing their sight or ability to walk. People must put the money upfront but they get it back and are able to give it back to the credit union. I especially thank the credit unions for playing ball with these people. The credit unions operate locally and know the people they are dealing with. We have bank managers who operate from Dublin and do not know the people on the ground who are looking for small amounts of money to stay afloat.

I wish the Minister of State well with the Bill. The credit unions seem to be happy with it and once they are happy, I am happy too because they are very important to the communities in which Deputy Michael Moynihan and I live. We share Ballydesmond. I operate on the Kerry side and he operates on the Cork side. We are all very proud of Nora Herlihy who started the credit union movement.

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