Rab Carrington has been elected British Mountaineering Council president, beating his rival for the post, renowned mountaineer Doug Scott.

Mr Carrington, who founded the Rab outdoor clothing and gear company, won the vote at the BMC’s annual meeting by 639 votes to 289. The new president will take over as head of the representative body for climbers, mountaineers and hillwalkers in England and Wales from outgoing post-holder Charles Clarke.

Mr Carrington stood on a modernising ticket, whereas Mr Scott favoured a ‘back to basics’ approach.

The annual meeting of the 65,000-member organisation took place at the National Mountaineering Centre at Plas-y-Brenin, over the weekend.