Pat Casey (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I again thank the Minister of State. We will be supporting the Bill which makes amendments to existing legislation, including urgently required changes relating to credit union general meetings to enable them to go ahead during the current pandemic. It also changes the terms of the membership of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council to strengthen continuity and widen eligibility. The Bill also makes changes to enable compliance with certain provisions contained in the SURE loan agreement which provides financial assistance to EU member states to address sudden increases in public expenditure caused by the Covid pandemic and to preserve employment.

The Bill is a priority in this term because the current legislative deadline for credit unions to hold their AGMs relating to the year ended in September 2020 is 30 January 2021. Therefore, it is important that this legislation is passed. Changes to the Fiscal Responsibility Act are also required by the end of 2020.

The credit unions will be able to hold AGMs virtually with the option of electronic voting. Maybe we should introduce similar provisions on how we operate our business in the Houses here. Maybe we could vote in a more efficient manner than we do at the moment.Maybe somebody could draft legislation on how we pass our own Bills here.

The Bill is concerned with credit unions and there is unanimous support for the credit union movement in both Houses of the Oireachtas. The movement is hugely valued in every community in the country. It is interesting to note that the two most trusted brands in Ireland are credit unions and An Post, both of which are very much community based. The community is at the heart of both organisations. The Minister of State and others have spoken about the future of credit unions and how to expand their role in the community. Credit unions have the potential to fill a void in communities. As we know, even our major towns are struggling to maintain a main street banking presence. Credit unions might be able to fill the gap left by the decline in main street banking. Banks are walking away from their customers and are not serving the needs of the local communities and local businesses and there may be an opportunity for credit unions to strengthen their role in that regard. I also agree with the Minister of State that it is time credit unions had a more active role in the mortgage market. I welcome both of these Bills and would like to put on the record of the House my faith and trust in the credit union movement in Ireland. I applaud what it has done for our people.