Cardigan town council has officially declared its support for an independent Wales.

At a meeting on Tuesday, it was unanimously agreed that the council should fly the flag for Welsh independence with an official declaration supporting the break-up of the UK.

In a statement issued in the wake of the announcement, mayor Shan Williams stressed that the council's call for independence was focussed on the need to empower Wales as a small country in its own right.

“Independence isn’t about creating division; it’s about celebrating our unique place in the world and becoming a proper part of the international family of nations,” she said.

She pointed to Wales’ limited voice at Westminster as inevitably leaving the nation secondary to the wants of England.

“Welsh MPs make up six per cent of the House of Commons,” said Cllr Williams. “In general elections, no matter how Wales votes, we get the Government that England wants.

“The people of Wales currently send 40 MPs to Westminster, with the Boundary Commission proposing that this number is reduced to 29! Obviously, the people of Wales are of no importance in Westminster.”

In the thought-provoking statement, she also pointed to the resources exported from Wales that brought little or no benefit to the nation.

“We export 100 billion litres of water to England every year,” the statement explained. “We generate two and a half times more electricity than we use. Wales is the fifth largest exporter of electricity in the world. Wales produces and grows more food than we consume.”

She quotes Plaid Cymru’s Carmarthen East and Dinefwr MP Jonathan Edwards to highlight the inequalities currently at play in the country: “How can a country ranked fifth in the world in terms of electricity exportation see a third of its people live in fuel poverty?”

Turning to Wales’ role in the UK and Europe, Cllr Williams demands change: “West Wales is the poorest region is Northern Europe with London being the richest, this absurd inequality needs to end, we deserve better.”

She also moved to counter what it called the “ingrained” view that Wales is “too small” or “too poor” to manage its own affairs.

“Some of the most prosperous and most equal countries in the world are small nations, and even smaller than us,” urges the statement.

“Resource rich Wales should not be this poor.”

The declaration comes as pollsters noted a significant rise in support for Welsh independence across the nation. According to a recent poll by YouGov, almost one in four - 24 per cent – would now vote for independence if a referendum was held tomorrow. That figure rose to 33 per cent if the UK was to leave the EU.

To read the mayor's statement in full, click here Cllr Shan Williams statement.pdf