Residents have launched a petition calling for an independent audit of Ceredigion County Council after a series of pay hikes, tax rises and controversial decisions.

In recent months, the Cambrian News has reported on council controversial moves including introducing car parking charges on Aberystwyth promenade against residents’ wishes, a pay bump for the council’s chief executive to more than £150,000, as well as continued council tax rises and warnings from the Auditor General for Wales that the council has submitted its accounts late.

Fed up residents have now launched a petition calling for a “reputable third-party audit of Ceredigion County Council” that “will ensure accountability and restore faith in local governance.”

Last week the Cambrian News Auditor General for Wales Adrian Crompton wrote to the council in March, saying Ceredigion had “difficulties in producing timely, accurate and high-quality accounts”.

He said that while the 2023/24 accounts were received in time, “the audit took longer than planned given significant issues with internal asset revaluations.”

In 2024/25 Ceredigion faced similar issues with external asset valuations and this delayed the submission of the draft accounts to 16 July 2025.

As in 2023/24 the audit took longer than planned, with both set of accounts certified more than a month after the deadline.

Cambrian News readers on Facebook called the Auditor General’s warnings “very worrying” but joked that it would not affect the ability of Eifion Evans to always be paid his pay rises on time.

Readers said the news was “not a surprise”, with some calling for the council to be “fully investigated.”

Another said it was a “total disgrace” and said the council “couldn’t run a bath.”

In May, readers described the news that Ceredigion’s Chief Executive is receiving a £5,000 pay rise as ‘totally obscene’.

The Cambrian News revealed that Eifion Evans is in line for a pay rise of nearly £5,000, meaning the top civil servant at the local authority will earn an annual salary of £151,529 in the current financial year, after his staff association that represents all local authority CEOs accepted a pay rise of 3.3 per cent.

He has been in the post since 2017, and since 2021, his annual pay has jumped by almost £35,000.

Ceredigion councillors also received a £1,273 pay rise from April.

In 2019, a county councillor took home £13,868 a year for carrying out their duties.

In 2026 – just seven years later - despite deepening cuts to services and double digit council tax rises for residents - that figure is set to be more than £7,000 a year higher than it was in 2019.

Since 2022, the average Band D council tax in Ceredigion has gone up £550 a year – a more than 40 per cent increase in just four years.

In March, councillors voted through a 4.75 per cent council tax increase in Ceredigion, despite hearing that it would be “another kick in the teeth” for residents struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.

It followed a 9.3 per cent rise last year which was opposed by some councillors who warned that families in the county “are at breaking point.”

That rise followed huge hikes in previous years, including 11.1 per cent in 2024/25 and a 7.3 per cent rise in 2023/24.

Earlier in May, parking charges were introduced along Aberystwyth promenade despite a consultation on the plan drawing 106 objections with vehement opposition from residents and businesses.

A long-mooted and opposed plan, in 2023, Plaid Cymru Cabinet members said they had “decided not to charge for parking on Aberystwyth’s promenade” ahead of a key Penparcau county council by-election.

Just over a year later, and with a growing financial black-hole at the heart of council finances, the same cabinet approved the plans to charge people to park on the promenade, with charges coming in “as soon as practically possible.”

Objections received during a consultation on the plans said the move will “drive people out of town” and called the plan “completely and utterly unnecessary.”

The council pushed ahead with the plan anyway.

This year, the council has also been grappling with the significant issues at the multi-million pound Aberaeron sea defences, which began to go wrong almost as soon as they were built for £36m – with Ceredigion County Council on the hook for £4.75m in overspend and also left paying for remedial works after the large breakwater created a growing shingle bank in the harbour entrance, making it “impassable” to all but dinghies.

Further work is ongoing to alleviate the problem.

Ceredigion County Council also came under fire for holding secret meetings to spend tax-payer’s money on “assets” including a £1.85m farm next to Lampeter’s university campus.

Lletty Twppa, which will help deliver vocational and post-16 courses in Ceredigion, was bought with a £2m Transforming Towns loan which will have to paid back, with all discussions of the purchase held behind closed doors.

The council has also been engaged in a bitter years-long legal battle with residents over a housing development on a Waunfawr field.

It was in response to the cycle of bad news and decision making that a petition was launched calling for an independent investigation of how Ceredigion County Council is run.

The petition, begun by Jacqueline Hughes, says there has been a “slow and disheartening decay”, in particular in Aberystwyth, “at the hands of Ceredigion County Council.”

“The council has initiated numerous ill-considered and costly projects that have eroded the footfall, made parking a nightmare, and consequently, businesses in town have suffered immensely,” the petition said.

“Opportunities for workers have dwindled, urgently needed tourism is deterred, and the concerns of residents are blatantly ignored.

“Meanwhile, services have declined, yet council tax continues to soar, compounded by the council members awarding themselves substantial pay raises consistently.

“This is utter mismanagement, and it’s we, the locals and businesses, who are bearing the brunt of it.

“Therefore, it is time that Ceredigion County Council submit to a comprehensive, independent and forensic accountancy audit.

“Up until now, they have been conducting their own audits without a shred of transparency, neglecting to provide us with clear and concise accounts.

“As residents and workers in Ceredigion, we deserve to know where every penny is going, understand what has been spent, what is currently being spent, and critically, what has been mismanaged.

“A reputable third-party audit will ensure accountability and restore faith in local governance.

“It will shed light on the decisions impacting our community and provide a detailed breakdown of financial allocations and discrepancies.

“It will empower us, the people of Ceredigion, by unveiling the truth behind opaque council operations.

“It's crucial to push for public engagement and meaningful consultation in all council decisions going forward.

“Transparent management and stringent oversight measures must be put in place to prevent mismanagement and ensure that all projects benefit the community, rather than hinder it.

“It's about time public funds are allocated wisely, to genuinely enhance our community and improve livelihoods.

“Let's come together to demand the transparency and accountability that we deserve.”

The petition, which has received almost 500 signatures, can be found at www.change.org/p/require-ceredigion-county-council-to-undergo-an-independent-audit.