At the meeting in Mullingar, Westmeath, IFA Councy Chairman Kenneth Bray asked the two candidates about how the organisation could get more women and young people involved. "James said he was going to crack a joke," according to Mr Bray, and the joke was that 'women's feet are smaller, so they can get closer to the kitchen sink', but it did not go down well with the room. "He also said that women do a lot of work behind the scenes on farms, including mountains of paperwork and raising families, but the remark went down like a lead balloon. "Neither candidate came up with ideas on how to get more women or young people into the organisation," the County Chairman said and that the mood in the room after the debate was not appreciative of the remark.

Trinity College Dublin has announced that use of the term 'freshman' is to be phased out and be replaced with the gender-neutral term 'fresh'. In an email to all staff and students announcing the news today Vice-Provost Chris Morash and Students' Union President Kevin Keane say a proposal from the Equality Committee that "the title given to first and second year undergraduates students be changed from 'Freshman' to the gender-neutral term 'Fresh'" had been approved.

"I think now what has happened is that it has just become like a marketing tool. It has become a way of helping to flog a few books and I think that's fine. "I don't think women writers need protection like that, I think they're perfectly able to take care of themselves in an open battle."