The Coalition is defending the appointment of a new board to oversee Ervia, the parent company of Irish Water, while maintaining a smaller board in place of the new semi-state.

On Tuesday the Cabinet approved a new board for Ervia, renamed from Bord Gáis, which keeps four of the existing members in place and appoints four new members, with one vacancy yet to be filled.

As the controversies surrounding Irish Water gathered pace last year, Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly said a new, united board for Irish Water and Ervia would be created.

There will still be two subsidiary boards for Irish Water itself and for Gas Networks Ireland, although Coalition figures claimed these will in effect be senior management committees. Legal, decision making powers will rest with the Ervia board, it is claimed, and subsidiary companies must have their boards to report to the parent company.

A spokesman for Mr Kelly said the subsidiary boards are a legal requirement under the Companies Act.

Rose Hynes retains her position as chairwoman of Ervia. She was also chairwoman of the now defunct old Irish Water board. The other board members who stay in position are Ervia chief executive Michael McNicholas; Mari Hurley, who is also a Fine Gael trustee; Finbarr Kennelly and Joe O’Flynn, Siptu general secretary and former Labour Lord Mayor of Cork, who has been reappointed for three years.

The new directors are Sean Hogan, whose term as chairman of Northern Ireland Water expires in March; James Martin, co-founder and chief executive officer of AMCS Group, located in Co Limerick; Celine Fitzgerald, a former customer service executive and management consultant who also servies on the board of the VHI; and Peter Cross, a former chief financial officer with Eircom who also serves on the HSE’s audit committee.

Ms Hynes is paid €31,500 per year and other board members, aside from senior management, receive, and €15,750.

The Irish Water board is chaired by Mr McNicholas and includes Irish Water managing director John Tierney, as well as Michael O’Sullivan and Brendan Murphy, both Ervia executives.

Mr McNicholas also chairs the Gas Networks Ireland board, which Mr Murphy and Mr O’Sullivan also sit on, as well as Sean Casey, the managing director of Bord Gáis Networks. No members of the subsidiary boards are paid any

“The two subsidiaries would be subject to the control and oversight of the parent company, but would have small executive boards to directly manage the business of each subsidiary,” said a statement from the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, the department which oversees Ervia.

“The process was run by PAS (Public Appointments Service) with input from New Era, relevant departments and the Ervia chair, as set out in the new guidelines for appointments to state boards.”

Minister for Communications Alex White said the new Ervia board“is equipped with the right mix of skills to steer the company on a steady course in the years ahead”.