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Credit Unions on the up
posted on 11/03/2009

Lorraine Barrett: Given that people are losing their jobs because of the global recession and that it is difficult for many to make ends meet, they can fall prey to loan sharks. Will you give an assurance that you and your Government will continue to promote and support credit unions, not merely as a means of accessing low interest loans, but to get people into the habit of saving regularly and safely?

The First Minister: You made the case extremely well. It is important, during the credit crunch, that people get used to the idea that you should both save and spend. They need to get into the habit of saving so that they know how to deal more sensibly with money. It is important to inculcate the saving habit at an early age. We have universal coverage of credit unions throughout Wales. We have started credit unions in a large number of schools in Wales to inculcate the saving habit at an early age. However, I do not want to overestimate the ability of credit unions to meet the impact of the credit crunch, because they are still small. There are not many more people in credit unions in the whole of Wales—even though they have quadrupled over the last few years—than there are in the city of Derry in Northern Ireland, where 60,000 people, almost half the population, are members of credit unions. It will probably take us a generation to reach that level of credit union participation.