AMs support credit unions in debate on Pay Day Loans
27 Jan 12
Members of the National Assembly for Wales from all parties were vocal in their support for credit unions as an affordable alternative to high cost lenders this week. The support came in a debate on a motion which calls for a recognition of the problems that pay day lending can cause and for the Welsh Government to do more to support affordable alternatives, such as credit unions.
Citing the recent passage of legislative reforms for credit unions, Conservative AM, Antoinette Sandbach, said: “On 8 January this year, the UK Government introduced a legislative reform Order that allows credit unions to greatly expand their activities, and I hope that the Minister will be working with credit unions to encourage them to make use of the new opportunities that are now available to them.”
Liberal Democrat AM, Aled Roberts, cited the proven potential for credit unions evidenced by their development in other parts of Europe: “It is also clear that another option, which we need to promote more readily—I should perhaps declare an interest here as a member of the Wrexham credit union—is the extension of credit union facilities in Wales. Sadly, we lag behind other European nations as far as credit unions are concerned. In Ireland, for example, there is much more extensive use of credit unions”
The Minister responsible for credit unions in the Welsh Government, Social Justice Minister Carl Sargeant AM, cited the fact that credit unions in Wales have helped thousands of financially excluded individuals over the past 2 years and took the opportunity to announce a TV advertising campaign for credit unions in Wales which will begin in February.
He said: “I am proud of our record in supporting credit unions in Wales to build their capacity to help people who are unable to access mainstream financial services from other providers, and who, otherwise, could be subject to exploitation from legal lenders with high interest rates, which Members have made reference to today. Universal credit union coverage has been achieved across Wales’s 22 authorities. Building the capacity of the credit union network to tackle poverty and financial exclusion is the next objective. [...]
“We must build on our success in the past two years in the way we promote credit unions. I have listened carefully to the contributions made by Members today. We are supporting credit unions to work together. We are developing a national television campaign that will start in February and run for a month during daytime programmes. We estimate that 2.4 million viewers will see the campaign.”
A transcript of the full debate is available here: http://www.assemblywales.org/bus-home/bus-chamber-fourth-assembly-rop.htm?act=dis&id=229851&ds=1%2F2012#dad
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