Questions asked about Ammanford Town Council’s accounts

It has been confirmed by the Audit Wales office that Ammanford Town Council has not submitted its accounts for audit since 2018.

Council candidates Calum Higgins and Anthony Jones submitted a freedom of information request about the audit status of the Council to both Ammanford Town Council and Wales Audit.

Ammanford Town Council refused to release any information, while Wales Audit revealed they have still not received any accounts from the town council in the years 2018 to 2021.

The Audit Wales confirmed in their response on the 29th of March 2022 that they had “liaised with the relevant audit team and confirm that no accounts have been received from Ammanford Town Council for the period 2018-2021.”

In a joint statement Calum Higgins and Anthony Jones said:
“Quite frankly it’s clear the council is not fit for purpose. It’s unlawful not to submit accounts for audit, and to do so for 3 years is staggering. Our view is that Ammanford Town Council should be put in special measures and every penny needs to be accounted for by a third party. People rightly need to know what the accounts look like. Taxpayers are still required to pay the local precept but we can see nothing is being spent in the parks and the basic council functions are not taking place. There are no minutes on the Council website since October last year, which is a basic requirement under law. We have decided to take action and write to the Information Commissioner and Minister for Local Government, calling for action. We urge members of the community to stand for election and take back control of the Council finances.”

Ammanford Town Council were contacted for a comment.