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In your coverage of Irish higher education, you appear to prefer tittle-tattle to significant news events. On September 24 the first meeting took place in Dublin between Universities UK and Universities Ireland, the new body that brings together Ireland's nine universities. Yet not a line was carried in your paper. But you did carry a report about a staff email sent by Gerry McKenna, vice-chancellor of Ulster University, concerning "misleading and inaccurate" speculation about his personal life (October 1).

Your readers may like to know that the meeting, hosted by McKenna as Universities Ireland chairman, agreed further discussion on the participation of Irish universities in the UK's Leadership Foundation for Higher Education; that the two bodies should explore joint research projects; and that they should work to develop common approaches on European issues.

Andy Pollak
Secretary, Universities Ireland