Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for his question. I am aware that the prompt enactment of this Credit Union (Amendment) Bill is widely sought by credit unions and both Minister Carroll MacNeill and I are working hard to progress this legislation as quickly as possible. However, at present, it is not possible to determine the precise timeframe by which the Bill will complete all stages in the Dáil.

The reason that no precise timeline can be provided at present, is that this the speed at which the Bill can be progressed will be heavily determined by both the capacity and availability of the Office of the Parliamentary Council (OPC) for the drafting process and by the availability of Dáil time to debate the Bill.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Bill was published in November 2022. In December 2022 the Bill completed the legislative process in the Seanad and in March 2023 it was introduced in the Dáil.

Since this time, both Minister Carroll MacNeill and the Department of Finance have engaged extensively with key stakeholders, including the credit union representative bodies and the Central Bank. As a result of this engagement, a number of amendments have been identified and will be brought forward at Committee Stage.

The enactment of the Credit Union (Amendment) Bill 2020 is a key priority of Government and as the first substantive credit union legislation since 2012, it will deliver on the Programme for Government commitment to support the credit union sector to expand their services.