Credit Union Offer Must Be Taken Seriously

The news that the League of Credit Unions” has offered the Government 5 billion Euro to fund social and local authority housing is a very interesting development and it needs to be looked at seriously and also in the context of the re-organisation of the Credit Union sector.
I have consistently raised the situation with regard to the position of Credit Unions since I was first elected. The banks have largely abandoned rural Ireland and there is certainly scope for an enhanced role for Credit Unions including the facility for them to provide mortgage facilities.However it is very disappointing to discover that the League of Credit Unions made their offer last October and they have heard nothing back from the Government or the Central Bank. This paralysis in decision making is one of the reasons why the housing crisis is spiraling out of control. Any new administration will also have to sit down with the League of Credit Unions and all the other stakeholders to decide how they are going to solve the housing crisis. Separately, the future role of the Credit Union sector should also be high on the agenda of any new administration.