At the 2009 Community CPS Annual General Meeting held on Wednesday 25 November in Perth, the resolution in relation to proposed amendments to the Community CPS Constitution was passed. This was the only resolution put to the meeting.

Members submitted questions of a varied nature some of which were more aligned to specific individual needs or issues rather than being governance or financial performance questions appropriate for comment at an AGM. The questions received can be summarised under the following topics:

1.      Impact of Mergers

There were a number of questions relating to the recent and pending mergers.

The credit union movement is rationalising at a rapid rate due to the impact of compliance, the need for scale in operations and the increase in competition. Our position is that we will consider mergers if they are in the interests of members, the partners has similar values and philosophy, and assists us in achieving our strategy.

There is an initial cost which has an impact on profitability but the synergies, the increased capital and the reduction in costs soon flow to improved profits and benefits to members.

The overwhelming evidence is that the merger between the S.A. and ACT credit unions was an outstanding success and has provided financial strength and capabilities to compete with any financial institution. 2009/10 will be the first full year of the United, Westax, and Polish mergers and despite the difficult economic conditions the early indications are that the results will be positive.

It would be difficult to estimate how our business would have coped during the GFC without the financial strength of the merged entity. The members entrust the Board with ensuring that the benefits are achieved and the risks minimised and the record so far is impressive.

2.      Venue for the Community CPS AGM

The Board’s policy is to rotate the venue for the AGM between Canberra, Adelaide and Perth. The Board and senior management have not ruled out the possibility that future AGMs may be web cast. Members that are unable to attend the AGM in person can appoint a proxy to vote on their behalf in relation to resolutions to be put at the AGM. Members are also entitled to ask for a copy of the minutes of the AGM.