Vol. 512 No. 7
85 Mr. Sargent asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her estimate of the total value of the operation of section 44 of the Credit Union Act, 1997, if implemented in full by all credit unions, as in the example (details supplied). [27239/99]
Section 44 of the Credit Union Act, 1997, allows a credit union establish a special fund to be used by it for social, cultural or charitable purposes, including community development. Under section 44(1), the establishment of such a special fund is entirely a matter for the decision by the majority of the members of each individual credit union attending and voting at its general meeting.
The Act limits the special fund to an amount not exceeding 2.5% of the accumulated reserves of each credit union, excluding the statutory reserve, in the year of establishment of the fund. At 30 September 1997, the last full year for which figures are available, total reserves for all credit unions in the State, excluding statutory reserves, were £41.5 million. If they all decided to establish the permitted fund at the maximum levels allowed in section 44(4), I estimate the value of these funds would be about £1 million.
The amount of money which may be added to the fund in each year out of the annual surplus of a credit union is limited to an amount not exceeding 0.5% of the value of the credit union's assets as shown in the accounts for the most recent financial year. At 30 September 1997, total assets for credit unions were £2.827 billion, which, if all credit unions were in surplus and were to add the maximum permitted by section 44(3) to their fund, would add in the region of £14 million to these funds.
