Former President of Ireland, Ballina native Mary Robinson said yesterday that the Independent global leader group the Elders will meet in Dublin next year due to Ireland’s presidency of the EU.

Nobel laureates are among the group, which includes Archbishop emeritus Desmond Tutu, former US president Jimmy Carter, former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan and former president of Brazil Ferdinand Henrique Cardoso.

Mrs Robinson, an Elders member said the group, which works for peace and human rights, would hold its next meeting in Dublin in May. She said there were some “really hot arguments” during meetings which tended to be between those who wanted to focus on acute crises such as Syria and others who wanted to tackle broader concerns such as child brides.