CARMARTHENSHIRE: Swiss Valley councillor elected as new council chair — and he wants to get around the whole county to meet its people

Carmarthenshire County Council has a new Chair after Cllr Giles Morgan was elected to the role at the authority’s Annual Meeting on Wednesday, 20 May 2026.

The Swiss Valley Ward member takes over the chain of office from Cllr Dot Jones, who he paid tribute to on taking the chair — thanking her for her service to the council.

Cllr Morgan said: “I’m honoured to be elected Chair of Carmarthenshire County Council and I look forward to the year ahead.”

His wife, Mrs Claire Morgan, will serve as his Consort throughout the coming year, with Cllr Betsan Jones, the member for Betws, appointed as Vice-Chair.

After the ceremony, Cllr Morgan took to Facebook to say he was looking forward to getting around the whole county to meet people and organisations — and was delighted that his parents had been there to see him take up the role.

The appointment makes Carmarthenshire the third south-west Wales authority in less than a week to inaugurate a new civic figurehead. Swansea schoolfriends Cllr Penny Matthews and Cllr Susan Jones were inaugurated as Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor at Swansea Guildhall on 15 May, while music teacher Cllr Alan Lockyer was installed as Mayor of Neath Port Talbot at Margam Park the same day.

The Chair is the first citizen of Carmarthenshire County Council and is elected each year at the Annual General Meeting.

Duties include chairing full meetings of the council and representing the authority at formal and ceremonial occasions throughout the county.

The Chair is also responsible for welcoming visitors to Carmarthenshire and attending and supporting events organised by local people and organisations across the area.

Cllr Morgan has served as a County Councillor since 2004, bringing more than 20 years of local government experience to the role.

He currently chairs the council’s Corporate Performance and Resources Committee and also sits on the Audit Committee.

For his year in office, Cllr Morgan has chosen two charities — Dementia UK and Blood Cancer UK.

Dementia UK provides specialist dementia nurses, known as Admiral Nurses, who offer one-to-one support to families living with all forms of dementia — including Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia.

Blood Cancer UK funds research into leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma and other blood cancers, and provides support to patients and their families.

The charity was previously known as Bloodwise — a name it held from 2015 until March 2020, when it rebranded to make its purpose clearer to the public. Before that, it operated as Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

Cllr Morgan’s election as Chair marks the beginning of a new civic year for the council, with a full programme of ceremonial and representative duties expected across Carmarthenshire over the next 12 months.

Related stories from Swansea Bay News

SWANSEA: Schoolfriends reunited as Cllr Penny Matthews becomes Lord Mayor — 60 years after they sat in the same classroom
Two of Swansea’s longest-serving councillors became Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor in the same year — a coincidence stretching back to their school days.

NEATH PORT TALBOT: From French horn to civic honours — meet the music teacher who has become the new Mayor
Cllr Alan Lockyer, founder of Neath Youth Wind Band and a lifelong music educator, was inaugurated as Mayor at Margam Park on 15 May.

#BloodCancerUK #CarmarthenshireCountyCouncil #Charity #DementiaUK #DotJones #GilesMorgan #Llanelli #SwissValley

Political battle erupts as Llanelli Rural Council approves 8% council tax rise – bringing three-year increase to 47%

The decision will affect residents across communities outside Llanelli town centre, including Llwynhendy, Pemberton, Five Roads, Bynea, Dafen, Felinfoel, Swiss Valley, and Glyn.

Opposition councillors from Plaid Cymru and Independent groups condemned the decision, warning it will place a further burden on households during the ongoing cost of living crisis, following an “eye-watering” 32% increase last year.

But Council Leader Cllr Rob Evans hit back, claiming the opposition councillors themselves were responsible for driving up the precept by insisting on ward-specific projects – and accused them of hypocrisy for criticising allowances while earning approximately £20,000 per year as County Councillors.

Cllr Alex Evans, Leader of the Opposition, said the decision shows “the administration is out of touch with the priorities of ordinary residents.”

“People are already struggling to get by. Forcing them to pay almost 50% more in council tax than just three years ago is just not on — that is why we had to vote against the proposed budget tonight. Residents are being asked to pay more while council leaders spend on luxuries,” he said.

Opposition councillors also criticised continued spending on councillor attendance payments, along with a leased car and chauffeur to escort the Chair of Council to events. An optional attendance payment allows councillors to claim £15 for each meeting they attend, with several meetings lasting less than 10 minutes in 2025, and the shortest lasting only three minutes.

“Opposition councillors and residents will rightly question the judgement and priorities of Labour councillors after refusing to scrap attendance payments and return the leased car,” Cllr Evans added.

Llanelli Rural Council offices on Vauxhall in Llanelli town centre, where councillors approved an 8% council tax rise bringing the three-year increase to 47%. Image: Google Maps/Llanelli Rural Council

Opposition councillors contrasted the move with neighbouring Llanelli Town Council which voted to freeze its tax.

The council has since moved from being Labour-run to a new Independent administration and has committed to scrapping councillor payments.

Cllr Sharen Davies, Independent member who also voted against the budget, challenged the administration’s claim that the tax rise was driven in part by the Canolfan Llwynhendy project.

“This development has been funded largely through grants and partner support. It should not be used as a smokescreen to justify excessive tax rises. Llwynhendy residents deserve investment and improvements in our community,” she said.

“This tax hike is completely unacceptable and will put serious financial pressure on our residents. Labour must rethink this further tax increase and start cutting back on unnecessary luxuries.”

However, Council Leader Cllr Rob Evans strongly rejected the criticism, pointing out that the Council’s administration is a coalition of Labour, Independent, and Plaid Cymru members – not a solely Labour-led authority.

He said the current Council has inherited a significant backlog of issues from the previous administration’s “lack of foresight” when adopting numerous new projects and asset transfers.

Cllr Evans explained that last year’s 32% increase was driven by unavoidable commitments, including £107,000 required in the Llwynhendy/Pemberton Ward to complete the new Canolfan Llwynhendy build and to fund unexpected drainage works at Gwili Fields in Cllr Sharen Davies’s ward, recruitment of additional staff to support growing community facilities, and replacement of a grounds maintenance vehicle.

He said this year’s 8% rise primarily reflects investment in Plaid Cymru and Independent wards, including £40,000 for refurbishing a play area for the Five Roads/Glyn Ward – Cllr Alex Evans’s ward – and further investment in Canolfan Llwynhendy.

“It is important to note that had Councillors Alex Evans and Sharen Davies not insisted on these additional ward-specific projects, this year’s rise would have been closer to the general cost of living and would have eased financial pressure on local households. For a Band D property, the increase equates to 28 pence per week,” Cllr Evans said.

On the Chairperson’s car, he said the Council continues to maintain a car and driver because the Chair must represent the Council at numerous civic events across the community, and not all Chairpersons are able to drive. “This support ensures the Chair can fulfil the role effectively and inclusively,” he added.

Regarding councillor allowances, Cllr Evans said Llanelli Rural Council is one of the largest and most ambitious town and community councils in Wales, and as a result, councillors face increasing demand on their time to meet governance and regulatory requirements.

“The role is no longer entirely voluntary in practice. Members dedicate substantial time to reading agendas, reports, and background papers, in addition to attending meetings. The meeting allowance ensures councillors are not out of pocket for fulfilling their duties,” he said.

He added:

“It must also be acknowledged that the councillors quoted in the opposition press release are themselves County Councillors. County Councillors receive a basic salary of approximately £20,000 per year, and for context this is more than the rural council’s entire budget.”

The council’s administration said it remains committed to transparency, responsible financial management, and ensuring that all communities within the Council area benefit from sustained investment and high quality services.

#Bynea #CllrAlexEvans #CllrRobEvans #CllrSharenDavies #Dafen #Felinfoel #FiveRoads #Glyn #IndependentPoliticians #Llanelli #LlanelliRuralCouncil #Llangennech #Llwynhendy #Pemberton #PlaidCymru #SwissValley #WelshLabour

Pembrey Country Park and Swiss Valley Reservoir join Wales National Forest scheme

The National Forest Scheme is run by Welsh Government, with members having to demonstrate ownership or management control of woodland in Wales that meets National Forest for Wales outcomes and has a woodland management plan in place.

Pembrey Country park and Swiss Valley’s Lower Lliedi Reservoir join Llys y Fran and Coed Uno in Pembrokeshire, Coed Parc y Moch in Gwynedd, Penpont in Powys, Halkyn Castle Wood in Flintshire, Pontyclun Woodlands in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Denmark Farm in Ceredigion and Sirhowy Hill Woodlands in Gwent in joining the scheme.

Pembrey Forest
(Image: Natural Resources Wales)Lower Lliedi Reservoir at Swiss Valley
(Image: Andrew Thomas / Llanelli Rural Council)

Welsh Government Deputy First Minister with responsibility for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies, said: “It’s wonderful to see the continued expansion of the National Forest for Wales and to be able to welcome this next group of woodlands to the network. We have a great ambition to have more of these throughout Wales, where they can be enjoyed by everyone.

“This is a very strong round with all the sites meeting all six of the National Forest outcomes, and shining a real light on the diversity of National Forest sites and the breadth of impacts and activities they undertake.

“I’d encourage other sites to join the National Forest so we can continue to expand the network of good quality, well designed and managed resilient woodland – as well as opening up more outdoor spaces, which are good for our wellbeing, and creating new green job opportunities.”

#Environment #HuwIrrancaDaviesMS #Llanelli #LowerLleidiReservoir #nationalForest #PembreyCountryPark #PembreyForest #SwissValley #SwissValleyReservoir