A survey will be sent to all Pembrokeshire county councillors to gage the scale of bullying and abuse members experience in office.

It was decided at a meeting of the democratic services committee to conduct a survey of all members before continuing with discussions of a Notice of Motion relating to safeguarding, put forward by Clr. Paul Dowson.

Some committee members were “flabbergasted” to hear of high levels of abuse, having never experienced it themselves, while others, including Clr. Jamie Adams, who said he was not surprised and had been “subject to an awful lot”.

He said it does affect some people more than others and it needed to be recognised by those standing for election that a “fairly high degree of resilience and having a thick skin is going to be require.”

A report to committee on Monday (November 22) outlined the protections and support available to councillors already and it was agreed that members’ views be sought before discussing the motion again.