Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will be as brief as I can. The word "trust" was used, and all Members realise that this is critically important. At the outset, Members were told that the entire idea behind partnering with Bord Gáis Éireann was to cut down on the costs and gain access to expertise in billing and such matters. This then progressed to a need to hire consultants. Members are familiar with the stages that happened along the way and that have eroded any prospect of trust. It appears to me as though quite a complex arrangement is being put in place here. The more complex the arrangement, the less one has any prospect of building trust if this company survives into the medium term at all. I have a question about the board itself. Ervia has a board and then there is Irish Water's subsidiary board. Do they have two different sets of memorandums and articles of association? How do they dovetail with each other? How do the two boards interact with each other? What will be the ratio between the Bord Gáis side and the Irish Water side in respect of the numerical component? Can the Minister of State give details to Members about the expertise?

The contribution by Deputy McNamara was very useful. We still are in a highly uncertain time and, although it is to be hoped that it does not happen, we may again have outside intervention in a direct way. When one begins to examine the assets, it is clear that the company certainly has plenty of them, with a limited number of financial liabilities. Consequently, when examining this legislation, one must consider the worst-case scenario and work back from that. Members must satisfy themselves with regard to the worst-case scenario, and I do not believe the governance structure of this joint entity is at all clear. Were the Minister to address that, it would be welcome.

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