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.

The petition raises concerns about the financial impact of Pembrokeshire County Council's climate emergency commitment, questioning potential tax hikes.

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, reads: “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 between 100 and 499 signatures triggers a debate at one of the council’s overview and scrutiny committees, and any over 500 a debate at full council.