Cornwall councillors will return to the council chamber at County Hall today for their first meeting in person for more than a year.

The annual general meeting will also be the first meeting of the council since the election earlier this month, which saw the Conservatives take control of Cornwall Council.

It will be all change in the council chamber in Truro’s council HQ with some members having to sit in the public gallery so that social distancing can be enforced.

Members of the public and press have been told they will not be allowed into the council chamber and instead can watch the meeting being webcast in another room in County Hall. The webcast will also be available for people to watch from their own homes.

The last full council meeting to be held in the council chamber was on February 25 last year, while the last council meeting held in person was the meeting of the Cabinet on March 18 – just days before the first lockdown.

Since then all council meetings have been held virtually with councillors meeting online to carry out all council business.

The agenda for today's meeting includes a number of items to appoint key members of the council for the coming year.

First up will be the chairman of the council – which has been reported will be taken by Conservative councillor Pauline Giles, unless there are any alternative nominations.

Councillors will also be asked to select a vice-chairman for the coming year, after which the newly elected chairman will make their announcements, which may include who they have chosen as their charity for the year.

The council will then note those councillors who have been elected after the polls on May 6 with a number of new faces set to take seats in the chamber.

There will then be the election of leader – which should be a formality as Conservative group leader Linda Taylor will take up her post.

Cllr Taylor will then announce who will be in her Cabinet – although this has already been reported following the election.

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There will then be reports on the appointment of members to committees of the council and nominations and allocations for the various political groups to committees.

Following the election there are now 47 Conservative councillors, 16 independent, 13 Liberal Democrats, five Labour councillors, five Mebyon Kernow councillors and one Green councillor.

Cllr Taylor, as leader of the council, will then be asked to give a report titled State of Cornwall in the National Context – although there has been a suggestion that this could be deferred until the next council meeting.

Councillors will also be asked to agree a schedule for full council meetings for the next year.

The annual meeting will start at 10.30am tomorrow (Tues) and will be available to watch online.