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Credit Unions

I beg to move,

That this House has considered the role and future of credit unions.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Twigg. At the outset of this debate, I wish to place formally on the record that I am a long-standing member of the NHS credit union, an organisation I first joined as it was my workplace credit union. It provided me the opportunity to save directly from my salary before I ever had the chance to spend it. When I received a pay rise, I would increase my contributions. I remain a proud member today, now paying in by direct debit. IPSA, the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, has not got quite as far as doing payroll deduction for credit unions.

The NHS credit union is now one of the largest in Scotland, but it did not start that way. It began at the Southern General hospital in Glasgow, founded by Robert Rae, a Unison branch secretary and hospital porter, to help some of the lowest-paid NHS staff—the cleaners, porters and clerical workers—to access fair, affordable finance and build financial resilience through saving. The credit union has grown remarkably since then, with more than 24,000 members, including staff and their families across NHS Scotland and parts of the north of England. Its common bond extends down to Sheffield. It now employs 18 staff and is an inspiring example of how credit unions grow not only in scale, but in purpose, deepening their role in communities and the economy.