Vol. 409 No. 6
33 Mr. Kavanagh asked the Minister for the Environment if he has plans to consult with Irish-based building societies with a view to facilitating their closer co-operation and possible consolidation thus ensuring the emergence of a strong Irish based building society-mortgage industry following the completion of the internal market in 1992; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
My principal function as Minister for the Environment is to ensure that the building society movement has a suitable and modern legislative framework that will allow societies to develop, to compete and to adopt the most appropriate corporate structure. This I have done in the Building Societies Act, 1989. Since the passing of that Act. I have availed of opportunities to suggest to societies that the present structure of their movement merits consideration in the context of the completion of the internal market and the increased competition it will bring. The ten societies that were operating at the time the Act came into effect will, I expect, soon number eight. However, it is ultimately a matter for the societies individually to make judgments on the best strategies to meet future competitive conditions and I have no proposals to pursue the matter further at present.
