The chairman of Powys Council is to see her term of office extended amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Councillor Beverley Baynham was due to hand over the chairmanship at the authority's annual general meeting on Thursday, May 14, but it was cancelled amid the virus outbreak.

She is now expected to remain in post for several more months while a new meeting can be scheduled.

Cllr Baynham said:  “Myself, the chief executive Dr Caroline Turner and monitoring officer, Clive Pinney agreed to postpone the annual meeting but as yet no decision has been made as to when it will take place.

“We have to just wait and see how it all plays out and when we are safe to hold the meeting.

“Depending on the time frame I may continue for a short while or perhaps longer. It really is up in the air at the moment.”

Cllr Baynham added: “I am very happy to continue in the role but would of course have preferred to hand over to the new chairman in normal circumstances, as I am sure we all wish Covid-19 had never arrived.”

At the annual meeting, the membership of all the council committees as well as allocating councillors to serve on outside bodies, such as the fire authority or police and crime panel takes place.

Legally local authorities are expected to hold an annual meeting in the spring, between March 1 to May 31, but coronavirus regulations that came into force in April gives councils until the end of the calendar year to hold their meetings.

Powys's next full council meeting is earmarked for Thursday, July 9.