Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to have the opportunity to bring this Bill back to the Seanad. I will speak broadly on the Bill, as the Seanad wishes, about the Bill’s background as we finish up. The Bill is the culmination of three years of collaborative work by my departmental officials, the credit union sector’s representative bodies, the Central Bank and many devoted credit union staff and volunteers from around the country. I thank all of them.

Amendment No. 1 is grouped with the other amendments of group 1. The group addresses expanding the definition of an “officer” of the credit union to include a member of the appellate body, which is referenced in section 37, and changes to the lending processes to allow for loan participation and loan syndication. Amendments Nos. 23 and 24 are on revised processes for loan approval and subsequent changes required for the appeal process. Amendment No. 25 is a technical amendment to section 38 correcting an error in the Bill as published originally. Amendment No. 48 is consequential on the establishment of corporate credit unions.