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Isle of Anglesey County Council

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The Isle of Anglesey County Council (Welsh: Cyngor Sir Ynys Môn) is the local authority for the Isle of Anglesey, a principal area with county status in Wales. Since 2022 the council has 35 councillors who represent 11 multi-member electoral wards.

Isle of Anglesey County Council

Cyngor Sir Ynys Môn
Coat of arms or logo
Logo
Type
Type
History
Founded1 April 1996
Preceded byGwynedd County Council
Leadership
Glyn Haynes,
Labour
since 21 May 2024[1]
Gary Pritchard,
Plaid Cymru
since July 2024
Dylan Williams
since March 2022[2]
Structure
Seats35 councillors
Political groups
Administration
  Plaid Cymru (20)
Other Parties (15)
  Independent (12)
  Labour (3)
Elections
Plurality voting in multi-member wards
Last election
5 May 2022
Next election
6 May 2027
Meeting place
Council Offices, Mill Street, Llangefni, LL77 7TW
Website
www.anglesey.gov.uk
Footnotes
[3]

History

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The first county council for Anglesey was created in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, which established elected county councils to take over the administrative functions of the quarter sessions. The original county council did not include "Isle of" in its name, simply being called "Anglesey County Council".[4] That county council and the administrative county of Anglesey were abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. Anglesey was merged with the mainland areas of Caernarfonshire, Merioneth, and part of Denbighshire to become a new county called Gwynedd. A lower-tier district was created covering Anglesey, with its council taking over district-level functions from Anglesey's previous eight district councils, which were abolished at the same time:[5]

The new district was awarded borough status. Uniquely among the 37 districts created in Wales in 1974 it was given a hyphenated name combining both the area's Welsh and English names: "Ynys Môn-Isle of Anglesey".[6] The council was therefore called "Ynys Môn-Isle of Anglesey Borough Council".[7]

Local government across Wales was reorganised again in 1996 under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, which replaced the previous two tier system of counties and districts with "principal areas" (each designated either a "county" or a "county borough"), whose councils perform the functions previously divided between the county and district councils. The pre-1996 borough of Ynys Môn-Isle of Anglesey was reconstituted as a county, and so gained administrative independence from Gwynedd.[8] Unlike in 1974, the 1994 Act gave separate English and Welsh names for each principal area, specifying that the new county was to be named "Anglesey" in English and "Sir Fôn" in Welsh. During the transition to the new system, the shadow authority requested a change of name in both languages, to "Isle of Anglesey" in English and "Sir Ynys Môn" in Welsh. The government confirmed the change with effect from 2 April 1996, one day after the new council came into being.[9] Since 1996 the local authority has therefore been "Isle of Anglesey County Council" in English, and "Cyngor Sir Ynys Môn" in Welsh.

External supervision

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The Wales Audit Office described the new council of having a "history of conflict and inappropriate behaviour" from the outset, with two public interest reports published in 1998 and a further three reports into the behaviour by 2001.[10] In September 2009 the council took on a 'troubleshooter' to sort out the squabbling, at a cost of £1,160 a day.[11] David Bowles was imposed on the council by the Welsh Government and paid via a recruitment company. He became Wales' most expensive public sector worker at the time.[12] Bowles sacked two members of the ruling council group, and the education and leisure head was forced to resign.[12]

In March 2011, after "years of political infighting", it became the first council in British history to have all executive functions suspended, with a team of commissioners appointed by the Welsh government put in place to run the council's functions,[13] with elections ultimately delayed,[14] meaning they took place a year after the rest of Wales, pending a new electoral system.[15]

Welsh language

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Welsh and English are the official languages of the council and have equal status and validity in the council's administration and work. According to the council's Welsh language policy, its aim is to ensure that Welsh will be the council's main language for both oral and written internal communication in the future.[16] Of those staff that assessed their language skills in 2016–2017, 79% could speak Welsh fluently.[17]

Hacking

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In February 2019 the council reported that North Korea was likely to have been behind a cyberattack on its systems, carried out through a proxy ISP (IP) address based in Japan. Experts suggested that Anglesey was not likely to have been the specific target, with the hackers engaged in a broader attack on UK government infrastructure.[18]

Island Forum

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In 2022, as part of the Levelling Up White Paper, an "Island Forum" was proposed, which would allow local policymakers and residents in Anglesey to work alongside their counterparts in Orkney, Shetland, the Western Isles and the Isle of Wight on common issues, such as broadband connectivity, and provide a platform for them to communicate directly with the government on the challenges island communities face in terms of levelling up.[19][20] The council has been a member of the Islands Forum since 2022.

In June 2023, the deputy council leader Ieuan Williams resigned after saying "all Tories should be shot".[21]

Political control

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The first election following the Local Government Act 1972 was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities before the new borough council came into its powers on 1 April 1974. A shadow authority was again elected in 1995 ahead of the reforms which came into force on 1 April 1996. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[22]

Lower-tier borough council

Party in control Years
Independent 1974–1996

Principal area

Party in control Years
Independent 1996–2013
No overall control 2013–2022
Plaid Cymru 2022–present

After the 2008 elections, the largest faction was the Original Independents. However, in 2010 the council leader, Clive McGregor, left the Original Independents to form Llais Môn[23] (meaning Anglesey Voice) who had five members by the time of the 2013 election.[24]

There were due to be elections on 3 May 2012, but these were postponed for one year by the Welsh Local Government minister, Carl Sargeant.[25] The 2013 Isle of Anglesey County Council election took place on 2 May 2013.[26] The 2017 Isle of Anglesey County Council election on 4 May resulted in a no overall majority position with Plaid Cymru holding 14 of the 30 seats. The 2022 Isle of Anglesey County Council election on 5 May resulted in an overall majority with Plaid Cymru holding 21 of 35 seats.[27]

Leadership

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The leaders of the council since 1996 have been:[28]

Councillor Party From To Notes
Gareth Winston Roberts Independent 1996 7 Apr 1998 Independent Group. Resigned in 1998 following the council administration being criticised.[29][30]
William John Williams Independent 7 Apr 1998 May 1999
Goronwy Parry Conservative May 1999 4 Apr 2003
Bob Parry Plaid Cymru 4 Apr 2003 24 Jun 2004 Plaid Cymru-led coalition.[31]
William John Williams Independent 24 Jun 2004 2 May 2006 [32]
Gareth Winston Roberts Independent 2 May 2006 9 May 2008 Independent Group[33]
Phil Fowlie Independent 9 May 2008 5 May 2009 Original Independents. Resigned his leadership in 2009 and his seat in September 2010.[34]
Clive McGregor Independent 5 May 2009 12 May 2011 [35]
Bryan Owen Independent 12 May 2011 5 May 2013 Independent Group. Lost his seat at the May 2013 election [36]
Ieuan Williams Independent 23 May 2013 7 May 2017 Independent Group[37]
Llinos Medi Plaid Cymru 23 May 2017 9 Jul 2024 First female leader of the council[38][39][40]

Composition

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Following the 2022 election the composition of the council was:

Party Councillors
Plaid Cymru 21
Independent 10
Labour 3
Liberal Democrats 1
Total 35

The Liberal Democrat and six of the independent councillors sit together as the "Anglesey Independents" group. The other four independent councillors form the "Independent Group".[41] The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

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Since 2017, council elections have taken place every five years.[22]

Year Seats Plaid Cymru Independent Labour Liberal Democrats Conservative Notes
1995 40 7 26 6 0 1 Independent majority controlled
1999 40 9 26 4 0 1 Independent majority controlled
2004 40 8 28 1 1 2 Independent majority controlled
2008 40 8 23 5 2 2 Independent majority controlled
2013 30 12 14 3 1 0 New ward boundaries.[42]
2017 30 14 13 2 1 0 [43]
2022 35 21 10 3 1 0 New ward boundaries.[44] Plaid Cymru majority controlled.[45]

Party with the most elected councillors in bold. Coalition agreements in notes column.

Premises

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Shire Hall, Glanhwfa Road, Llangefni

From 1889, meetings of the county council were initially held in the county courthouse on the west side of Glanhwfa Road in Llangefni.[46] A new Shire Hall was built in 1899 directly opposite the courthouse, and served as the council's headquarters until the first county council was abolished in 1974.[47] Shire Hall was renamed the "Borough Council Offices" in 1974 when it became the headquarters of Ynys Môn-Isle of Anglesey Borough Council.[48][49] Following the local government reforms in 1996, new council offices were built at Mill Street (Welsh: Lon-y-Felin) in Llangefni in the late 1990s for the new Isle of Anglesey County Council.[10][50]

Electoral divisions

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From the 1995 council elections until just prior to the elections in 2013, the county was divided into 40 electoral wards returning 40 councillors.[51] There are also 40 communities (parishes) in the county, some of which have their own elected community council, but few communities were coterminous with the 40 council wards. The 40 wards were:

Aberffraw (included Aberffraw community/Maelog ward* part of Llanfaelog), Amlwch Port (Port and Town wards* of Amlwch Town), Amlwch Rural (Rural ward* of Amlwch Town), Beaumaris (Beaumaris), Bodffordd (Bodffordd/Cerrigceinwen ward* of Llangristiolus), Bodorgan (Bodorgan/Llangristiolus ward* of Llangristiolus), Braint (Braint ward* of Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll), Bryngwran (Bryngwran/Trewalchmai), Brynteg (Benllech and Brynteg wards* of Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf), Cadnant (Cadnant ward* of Menai Bridge), Cefni (Cefni ward* of Llangefni), Cwm Cadnant (Cwm Cadnant), Cyngar (Cyngar ward* of Llangefni), Gwyngyll (Gwyngyll ward* of Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll), Holyhead Town (Town ward* of Holyhead town), Kingsland (Kingsland ward* of Holyhead), Llanbadrig (Llanbadrig), Llanbedrgoch (Benllech 'A'/Llanbedrgoch wards* of Llanfair-Mathafarn-Eithaf), Llanddyfnan (Llanddyfnan/Llaneugrad), Llaneilian (Llaneilian/Rhosybol), Llanfaethlu (Llanfachraeth/Llanfaethlu/Llanrhuddlad ward* of Cylch-y-Garn), Llanfair-yn-Neubwll (Bodedern/Llanfair-yn-Neubwll), Llanfihangel Ysgeifiog (Llanfihangel Ysgeifiog/Penmynydd), Llangoed (Llangoed and Penmon), Llanidan (Llanddaniel Fab/Llanidan), Llannerch-y-medd (Llannerch-y-medd/Tref Alaw), London Road (London Road ward* of Holyhead town), Maeshyfryd (Maeshyfryd ward* of Holyhead town), Mechell (Mechell/Llanfairynghornwy ward* of Cylch-y-Garn), Morawelon (Morawelon ward* of Holyhead), Moelfre (Moelfre), Parc a'r Mynydd (Parc a'r Mynydd ward* of Holyhead town), Pentraeth (Llanddona/Pentraeth), Porthyfelin (Porthyfelin ward* of Holyhead town), Rhosneigr (Rhosneigr ward* of Llanfaelog), Rhosyr (Rhosyr), Trearddur (Rhoscolyn/Trearddur), Tudur (Tudur ward* of Llangefni Town), Tysilio (Tysilio ward* of Menai Bridge) and Valley (Valley).
* = electoral ward of a community with its own electoral subdivisions and community council

Electoral review

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Electoral divisions on the Isle of Anglesey

A review of electoral arrangements on Anglesey by the Local Government Boundary Commission for Wales began in 2010.[52] This was scrapped and recommenced in 2011 following a new instruction by the Welsh Government.[53]

Under The Isle of Anglesey (Electoral Arrangements) Order 2012, there are 30 councillors to be elected (a reduction from the previous 40) from 11 multi-member wards.[15] The current electoral wards (numbers of councillors in parentheses) are:

  1. Aethwy (3), formed by the Communities of Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll, Menai Bridge and Penmynydd
  2. Bro Aberffraw (2), formed by the Communities of Aberffraw, Bodorgan and Rhosyr
  3. Bro Rhosyr (2), formed by the Communities of Llanidan, Llanfihangel Ysceifiog, Llanddaniel Fab and Llangristiolus
  4. Caergybi (3), the electoral wards of Town, London Road, Morawelon, Porthyfelin, and Parc a'r Mynydd in the Community of Holyhead
  5. Canolbarth Môn (Central Anglesey) (3), the Communities of Bryngwran, Bodffordd, Llangefni, and Trewalchmai, and the electoral wards of Llanddyfnan, Llangwyllog and Tregacan in the Community of Llanddyfnan.
  6. Llifôn (2), the Communities of Llanfaelog, Llanfair-yn-Neubwll and Valley
  7. Lligwy (3), the Communities of Moelfre, Llaneugrad, Llanfair-Mathafarn-Eithaf and Pentraeth; and the electoral ward of Llanfihangel Tre'r Beirdd in the Community of Llanddyfnan
  8. Seiriol (3), formed by the Communities of Beaumaris, Cwm Cadnant, Llanddona, and Llangoed.
  9. Talybolion (3), formed by the Communities of Bodedern, Cylch-y-garn, Llannerch-y-medd, Llanfachraeth, Llanfaethlu, Mechell and Tref Alaw
  10. Twrcelyn (3), the Communities of Amlwch, Llanbadrig, Llaneilian, and Rhosybol
  11. Ynys Gybi (Holy Island) (3), the Communities of Trearddur and Rhoscolyn and the electoral wards of Maeshyfryd and Kingsland in the Community of Holyhead.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Spridgeon, Dale (29 May 2024). "Former merchant seaman takes up Anglesey Council Chair". North Wales Chronicle. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  2. ^ Cromar, Chris (21 December 2021). "Isle of Anglesey County Council appoints new Chief Executive". Public Sector Executive. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  3. ^ "Find Councillor". 4 September 2021.
  4. ^ "No. 46250". The London Gazette. 29 March 1974. p. 4143.
  5. ^ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 19 November 2022
  6. ^ "The Districts in Wales (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/34, retrieved 30 October 2022
  7. ^ "No. 54119". The London Gazette. 2 August 1995. p. 10575.
  8. ^ "Local Government (Wales) Act 1994", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1994 c. 19, retrieved 8 November 2022
  9. ^ "Hansard: Written Answers". UK Parliament. 2 April 1996. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  10. ^ a b "Special Inspection: Corporate Governance Re-Inspection - Isle of Anglesey County Council" (PDF). Wales Audit Office. March 2011. pp. 7–8. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  11. ^ "Council pays £275,000 to sort out squabbles". Daily Express. 2 June 2010. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  12. ^ a b Aled Blake (24 May 2010). "Troubleshooter is highest-paid public-sector worker". Wales Online. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Embattled council is taken over". BBC News. 16 March 2011.
  14. ^ "Anglesey poll postponed for year". BBC News. 17 January 2012.
  15. ^ a b The Isle of Anglesey (Electoral Arrangements) Order 2012 Legislation.gov.uk
  16. ^ "Welsh Language Policy" (PDF). Isle of Anglesey County Council. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  17. ^ "ISLE OF ANGLESEY COUNTY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT ON THE WELSH LANGUAGE STANDARDS 2016-17" (PDF). Isle of Anglesey County Council. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  18. ^ Wyn-Williams, Gareth (13 February 2019). "North Korea and Russia in cyber attacks on Anglesey council". dailypost.co.uk. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
  19. ^ Cope, Chris (3 February 2021). "New islands forum should not be 'box ticking exercise'". The Shetland News. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  20. ^ Paveley, Rebecca (11 February 2021). "Gove announces Levelling-up forum for islands". Church Times. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  21. ^ Media, P. A. (13 June 2023). "Welsh councillor resigns after saying 'all Tories should be shot'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  22. ^ a b "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
  23. ^ "New alliance to take control of Anglesey Council". Daily Post. 9 June 2010. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  24. ^ Heledd Fychan (4 May 2013). "Anglesey can become proud of itself again". Click on Wales. Institute of Welsh Affairs. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  25. ^ "Anglesey council election postponed for year to 2013". BBC Sport. BBC. 17 January 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
  26. ^ "Trailer - Local Elections May 2008". www.gwydir.demon.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2 August 2009. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
  27. ^ "Anglesey result - Local Elections 2022". BBC News. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  28. ^ "Council minutes". Isle of Anglesey County Council. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  29. ^ "Council minutes, 9 April 1998". Isle of Anglesey County Council. Archived from the original on 30 May 2000. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  30. ^ Paddy French, ed. (15 April 2013). "Dirty Rotten Scoundrel, OBE". Rebecca Television. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  31. ^ "Labour hail a return to the fold". North Wales Live. 15 June 2004. Retrieved 23 March 2004.
  32. ^ Hughes, Owen (8 January 2013). "Tributes paid to former council leader WJ Williams". Daily Post. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  33. ^ Elgan Hearn (9 April 2008). "Anglesey Council elections next month after nominations close". Daily Post. North Wales. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  34. ^ Darren Devine (28 September 2010). "Former leader of Anglesey council waits for tribunal's verdict". Wales Online. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  35. ^ "Outgoing Anglesey council leader criticises new group". BBC News. 22 February 2011. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  36. ^ Gareth Wyn-Williams (5 May 2017). "Local election results: No party wins overall control in Anglesey Council". Daily Post. North Wales. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  37. ^ Gareth Wyn-Williams (30 March 2017). "Anglesey council leader will not seek top job again". Daily Post. North Wales. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  38. ^ "Plaid puts forward sole candidate for Anglesey council leader". BBC News. 11 May 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  39. ^ Gareth Wyn-Williams (12 May 2017). "Anglesey Council to be led by woman for first time". Daily Post. North Wales. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  40. ^ "Llinos Medi relinquishes role of Council Leader". Isle of Anglesey County Council. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  41. ^ "Your councillors by party". Isle of Anglesey County Council. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  42. ^ "The Isle of Anglesey (Electoral Arrangements) Order 2012", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2012/2676, retrieved 19 November 2022
  43. ^ "Election results by party, 4 May 2017". democracy.anglesey.gov.uk. 4 May 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  44. ^ "The County of the Isle of Anglesey (Electoral Arrangements) Order 2021", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2021/1112, retrieved 19 November 2022
  45. ^ "Anglesey result - Local Elections 2022". BBC News. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  46. ^ "Anglesey County Council". The North Wales Express. 19 July 1889. hdl:10107/3563349. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  47. ^ "Anglesey's Shire Hall could be transformed into pod hotel and business centre". North Wales Live. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  48. ^ "No. 48503". The London Gazette. 23 January 1981. p. 1089.
  49. ^ "Isle of Anglesey Borough Council". Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  50. ^ "Planning application 34LPA700/CC". Isle of Anglesey County Council. Retrieved 20 November 2022. Demolition of the existing offices and associated car parking on land at the Council Offices and car parks, Llangefni. Application received 30 August 1996, granted 10 December 1997.
  51. ^ The Borough of Ynys Môn—Isle of Anglesey (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1992, 23 November 1992. Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  52. ^ Isle of Anglesey Local Government Boundary Commission for Wales
  53. ^ DIRECTION TO THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOUNDARY COMMISSION FOR WALES 2011 Welsh Government
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