JONATHAN GRIMES has said he is “incredibly proud and deeply honoured” after becoming the 647th Mayor of Pembroke.

Cllr Grimes, county councillor for Pembroke St Mary South and Monkton, thanked those who had placed their trust and confidence in him.

He said: “With the support, commitment and dedication of Pembroke Town Council and our wonderful community, I am confident we can meet every challenge together, celebrate our successes, and continue building a brighter and more inclusive future for Pembroke.

“It is a true privilege to serve as Mayor, and I look forward to working alongside the people of Pembroke in the months ahead.”

Cllr Grimes said he was also looking forward to attending this afternoon’s service at St Mary’s Church in Pembroke for the Blessing of the Bells.

He added that he hoped to meet as many people as possible as the town celebrates the return of the historic bells.

A PETITION call to Pembrokeshire councillors, which raises concerns at the “hefty funds” needed to support its commitment to net zero, will be heard at full council next week.

Last July, councillors agreed to set up a group to review its own decision to declare a climate emergency some seven years ago.

In May 2019, the council declared a climate emergency following a notice of motion by Cllr Joshua Beynon calling on the authority to back the global consensus that climate change poses a risk to the well-being of future generations.

He had urged county councillors to back a motion to take “bold, decisive action” to fight “truly, catastrophic” climate change, with the council to committing to becoming a zero-carbon local authority by 2030.

At the July 2025 meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, a successful notice of motion by the late Cllr Mike Stoddart called for the establishment of a working group to review that decision.

That led to a recent petition, by Lynda Duffill of West Wales Climate Coalition, which attracted 725 signatures, calling on the council to reaffirm its Declaration of a Climate Emergency, and retain the ambition to deliver Net Zero Council operations by 2030.

That petition was considered at the October 2025 meeting of full council; members agreeing the working group be asked to ensure the petition is included as evidence in its consideration of the matters referred to it by the council resolution in July 2025.

That has now led to a further petition, concerned at a potential increase in council tax from a re-affirmation of a Declaration of a Climate Emergency.

The latest e-petition, on the council’s own website, created by Carolyn Ellis, read: “We call upon all elected members of Pembrokeshire County Council to support and to take seriously the working group tasked with the review of the ‘climate emergency’ called in 2019 (by the-then 21-year-old councillor Joshua Beynon) and to question the hefty funds needed to spend on ‘net zero’.

“We refer to the recent petition by the West Wales Climate Coalition which purports to speak for the residents and council tax-payers of Pembrokeshire.

“There is potentially a far higher number of residents who do not share this unsubstantiated view and who are extremely concerned about the potential for huge hikes in council tax, especially if this tax is linked in future to the carbon efficiency of homes and businesses.

“This was hinted at as a possible lever for encouraging ‘compliance’ with decarbonising homes in the ‘Better Homes, Better Wales, Better World’ report. Therefore, not only could we be faced with more taxes, but also inevitable deterioration in service provision by PCC.”

The current petition ran to March 26 and attracted 753 signatures; any petition of over 500 triggers a debate at full council, the petition due to be heard at the May 14 meeting.

WELSH First Minister Eluned Morgan has resigned as leader of the Labour Party after she lost her seat in a catastrophic Senedd election for the former ruling party.

Baroness Morgan was defeated in the Ceredigion Penfro constituency with Labour failing to pick up any of the six seats available in the new ward.

Plaid Cymru gained three, Reform two, and the Welsh Conservatives one as Labour trailed in fourth place in the seat.

Baroness Morgan had previously said she was at risk of losing her seat in this election, and Labour sources were reported showing a sense of unease as counting took place.

She has now stood down as First Minister and Welsh Labour leader.

The First Minister was one of 44 candidates for the Ceredigion Penfro, seven of them Labour, with a total of six seats up for grabs.

Plaid Cymru and Reform have topped opinion polls throughout this election campaign, but polls have indicated one single party may not be able to gain enough votes in the now 96 seat Senedd to govern.

During the count, unconfirmed rumours said Eluned Morgan was in danger of losing her seat.

Baroness Morgan first became an MS in 2016, becoming the sixth First Minister, and the first woman to hold the post, in 2024.

During the 2026 campaign trail, on the issue of a potential coalition or working closer with another party like Plaid Cymru, she said: “I’m not making promises on anything until after the election, what I will say is we won’t under any circumstances work with Reform, it’s important our values are clear and we wouldn’t work with them.”

The First Minister entered the count at held at Llandysul’s Ysgol Bro Teifi to a media scrum, the results for the party seeing it only slightly ahead of the Green party.

Out of 89,402 votes cast, Plaid Cymru gained 31,943; Reform 23,003; Welsh Conservatives 14,789; Labour 6,495; Green 6,324; Liberal Democrats 4,613; Gwlad 802; Heritage Party 442; Aaron Carey 368; George Alexander Chadzy 286, and Paul Haywood Dowson 88.

The six candidates elected were: Elin Jones Plaid Cymru, Susan Claire Archibald Reform, Kerry Ferguson Plaid Cymru, Welsh Conservatives Paul Windsor Davies, Paul Marr Reform, and Anna Nicholl Plaid.