BRUSSELS, Belgium – Seventeen representatives of the British, Irish, Lithuanian, and Polish credit union movements met in Brussels last week to discuss a common strategy to address the impact of European Union legislation on credit unions and their members. The World Council of Credit Unions served as the facilitator for the meeting that was chaired by Bobby McVeigh, 1st chairman of WOCCU's Board of Directors. New directives in the areas of consumer credit, money laundering, payment systems, consumer protection, accounting standards and capital requirements are some of the changes in the EU legislation affecting credit unions. WOCCU said "these need to be analyzed and possible amended to respond to the demands of protecting the uniqueness of credit unions serving their members in the EU." "There is no doubt about the urgent need for influencing EU legislation protecting the interests of credit unions and their members. EU legislation is gradually overriding national legislation, and therefore potentially influences the future of credit unions in the EU," said WOCCU President/CEO Arthur Arnold.