Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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16. To ask the Minister for Finance when the resolution report and affidavit on a credit union (details supplied) will be published; if it will be published in full; the actions he and his Department will take; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33934/16]

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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23. To ask the Minister for Finance the meetings or engagement he or his Department has had with the ILCU in respect of arrangements that can be put in place to provide credit union services for the former members of a credit union (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33935/16]

Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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42. To ask the Minister for Finance his views on plans to distribute the value of the assets held by a credit union (details supplied) to its members, in view of the fact that the statement issued by the Central Bank on 2 November 2016 made reference only to the return to members of deposits held with the credit union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34036/16]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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46. To ask the Minister for Finance the implications for the credit union movement here of the decision by the Central Bank to seek the appointment of provisional liquidators to a credit union (details supplied); the discussions his Department has had with the Irish League of Credit Unions and Credit Union Development Association regarding this development; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33938/16]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 16, 23, 42 and 46 together.

The decision to apply to the High Court to wind up Rush Credit Union Ltd was made by the Governor of the Central Bank. The legal grounds under which the Governor made this decision are set out in the Central Bank and Credit Institutions (Resolution) Act 2011.

I have been informed by the Central Bank that it made an application on 2 November 2016 to the High Court to have joint provisional liquidators appointed to Rush Credit Union Limited. Jim Luby and Tom Rogers of McStay Luby were appointed as joint provisional liquidators on that date by the President of the High Court, Mr Justice Peter Kelly. The full application will be heard on 21 November, when the Central Bank will seek the winding up of Rush Credit Union Ltd. The Central Bank took this action in order to ensure the protection of members' savings. The credit union will not re-open and all issues relating to the wind down of services will be managed by the Joint Provisional Liquidators.

The Central Bank has further informed me that its objective is to be as transparent as possible by providing information to reassure credit union members regarding the actions taken. For legal reasons, the Central Bank is constrained in terms of the specific details it can provide, pending the decision of the High Court on 21 November 2016.  The Central Bank will publish the Resolution Report and Affidavit (on a redacted basis) on its website following the full hearing for the winding up of Rush Credit Union Ltd in the High Court on 21 November 2016.

Following the appointment of the Joint Provisional Liquidators the Deposit Guarantee Scheme (DGS) has been invoked.  Members of Rush Credit Union Ltd will receive compensation in respect of their eligible deposits up to €100,000 per member. The DGS will make compensation payments as early as possible within the statutory deadline of 20 working days to duly verified depositors.

Rush Credit Union Ltd has been monitored by the Central Bank over a number of years and during that time the Central Bank investigated aspects of its business. The Central Bank is of the view that there are a number of reasons for the failure of Rush Credit Union Ltd which have manifested over an extended period of time. These include issues relating to governance, internal controls, lending practices and valuation of its premises. Despite assurances given by Rush Credit Union Ltd to the Central Bank, and the credit union having been provided with an opportunity to address the issues concerned, in the opinion of the Central Bank, they have not been adequately addressed. In applying for winding up, the Central Bank has also considered Rush Credit Union Ltd's recent financial performance and its constrained capacity to ameliorate its distressed financial position.  In the absence of taking the proposed action, the nature of the financial, governance and internal controls issues, could lead to a disorderly collapse of Rush Credit Union Ltd.

The registration and regulation of credit unions is the responsibility of the Registrar of Credit Unions within the Central Bank, who is the independent regulator for credit unions. The Central Bank is keen that credit union services are available to the people of Rush and Lusk. I share this view.  The Central Bank informs me that it is conscious that there is a demand for the services of a credit union in the local area and will examine what arrangements can be put in place to provide specific credit union services in the community in the future.  In some cases, members may currently be able to avail of services in another credit union in the area as the common bond may extend into their locality or through their place of work.

While the Central Bank is willing and prepared to take the necessary action to protect the savings of credit union members, it remains fully supportive of the credit union sector in Ireland and is committed to the continued development of a strong and sustainable sector that meets members' changing needs and protects their savings.

The Government recognises the important role of credit unions as a volunteer co-operative movement in this country. The Government's priorities remain the protection of members' savings, the financial stability of credit unions and the sector overall and it is determined to continue to support a strengthened and growing credit union movement.