Fifteen Labour councillors were voted onto Llanelli Town Council in May 2022 compared to six Independents and one from Plaid Cymru.
There have been comings and goings since and the current make-up is 10 Independents, nine Labour, two Green Party and one Plaid Cymru.
Independent councillors Sean Rees and Michael Cranham have been appointed leader and deputy leader respectively of the Independent-led group.
Cllr Rees said the change followed a period in which he said councillors had expressed a loss of confidence in the direction and decision-making of the Labour administration.
The new administration, he said, was operating on a confidence and supply agreement basis rather than a coalition and comprised the 10 Independent councillors and the Plaid Cymru one, Cllr Terry Davies.
Cllr Rees, who is also a Carmarthenshire councillor, said he was proud and honoured to serve as leader. “We are determined to run the council in the best interests of Llanelli. Residents want us to focus on local services, community facilities, and value for money – not party politics.
“Our priority will be to listen and put our residents at the heart of every decision, while delivering practical improvements that will make a real difference to our town.”
Cllr Cranham said it would focus on responsible expenditure of public money. “We are ready to work with anyone who shares that goal, while also ensuring the council operates with the stability and effectiveness our town expects,” he said.
The new administration has pledged to record and publish council meetings to strengthen transparency and trust, bring forward proposals to remove town councillor expenses, work towards freezing the town council precept for 2026–27 while protecting financial stability, prioritise investment in community facilities, play areas, and green spaces, remove party politics from council decision-making, and support community organisations and volunteers across Llanelli.
Former Labour town council leader David Darkin said the electorate had backed “a clear and ambitious manifesto” in 2022 and that he and his party colleagues had worked hard to turn it into reality.
“We strengthened community facilities, invested in well-being, improved parks and public spaces, and supported local groups and events across the town,” said Cllr Darkin, who also thanked council officers for their professionalism and support.
Cllr Darkin congratulated Cllr Rees and the new administration, but he said it didn’t have a shared manifesto and that he didn’t know what it stood for.
He said: “Residents deserve transparency and clarity about the direction their council will now take. As Labour councillors, we will now serve as the official opposition. Our role is clear: to hold the new administration to account, to ensure decisions are made openly and responsibly, and to stand up for the values and priorities that the public voted for.”
The town council’s income was just over £1.78 million in 2024-25, according to accounts, with £1.5 million of it coming from Llanelli taxpayers via the precept. Expenditure was just over £1.7 million, leaving a surplus of around £84,000.
The precept this financial year is £1.53 million, equating to £168.94p for Band D council tax payers.
A motion proposing no increase in the precept for 2026-27 was put forward by Cllr Darkin at a recent meeting and seconded by Cllr Rees.
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