Newfoundland and Labrador has a new minister responsible for credit unions and the Credit Union Deposit Guarantee Corporation, Lloyd Parrott.
On 20 August, province premier Tony Wakeham announced a surprise cabinet shuffle. Parrott’s new role comes in addition to his other high-profile portfolios, including energy and mines. He also became minister of red tape reduction, a new portfolio. His predecessor in the credit union role, Mike Goosney, moves to tourism.
The Canadian Credit Union Association (CCUA) has written a congratulatory letter to the minister and requested a meeting. The apex hosted Parrott at a previous MHA reception when he was a member of the official opposition.
The letter, signed by regional director Jennifer English, stressed the importance of credit unions in the province.
“Credit unions are community focused, full-service financial institutions in both rural and metro areas across the province,” she wrote. “The six institutions that comprise Newfoundland and Labrador’s credit union system manage over CA$1.7bn in assets, serve more than 60,000 members, operate 39 branches across the province, and employ more than 300 Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
“Credit unions are vital to local communities and economic growth across the whole of the province, while also providing other vital services, including competitive mortgage.”
English stressed the importance of implementing a consumer-driven banking framework to “codify the rights and obligations of participants, technical standards and security requirements, liability and recourse
structures, and more, for the secure sharing of financial data”.
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She added: “This technology could lead to industry changing impacts on data aggregation services, process improvements and efficiencies, advanced analytics and advice, and new product offerings.
“Depending on the content of the regulations, provincial regulatory amendments may be required to ensure that credit unions in the province are able to participate in consumer-driven banking.”
English also highlighted Real-Time Rail, a new payment system set to launch in Canada by the end of the year.
“Real-Time Rail will transform Canada’s payments ecosystem by modernising the exchange, clearing and settlement payment system, while ensuring safe and secure transactions,” she wrote. “Newfoundland and Labrador credit unions have the technology in place to participate in the first phase of Real-Time Rail, but this transformation will be significant.
“We would welcome the opportunity to brief you on the importance of consumer-driven banking and Real-Time Rail for credit unions and how they can benefit Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
“Credit unions would also appreciate the chance to discuss other areas where we can find ways
to work together – particularly around housing, supporting small and medium-sized businesses,
and improving financial literacy.”
The reshuffle came days after a new Churchill Falls agreement was signed by the governments of Newfoundland and Labrador, Quebec and Canada.
The $273bn agreement is politically and economically significant, says CCUA, and is expected to create thousands of jobs for skilled workers in the province.
The agreement will also set the tone for the government’s new roles and priorities, including a special legislative session to debate the deal on 14 September.
