A Pembrokeshire councillor has hit back at an anonymous 'online smear campaign' against her, allegedly involving a fellow member of the council.

Claims have been made online that independent councillor for Tenby South, and three-times town mayor, Sam Skyrme-Blackhall, was 'a closet supporter' of the Labour party.

Responding to the claims, she said: "I am not and never have been a member of the Labour Party or any other party. I stood as an Independent (non-affiliated) and I will serve as an Independent.

“As for the rest, well it is very sad and to be honest quite distressing when [colleagues] decide to hide behind fake names and false accounts. When I speak, I do it openly, I do it as an independent woman, and I do it in my name."

West Williamston councillor Jacob Williams recently highlighted what he called an 'anonymous smear campaign' against her.

He cited two Facebook pages, one entitled ‘Moanalot’ and the other ‘Not Another Blogger’. He said the 'Moanalot' page was a renamed version of a previous page by a councillor, which he says was confirmed by Facebook’s transparency section.

Cllr Williams said ‘Moanalot’ became vocal following a close-run but failed attempt to remove council leader David Simpson through a no-confidence motion. Cllr Simpson, at the May 18 extraordinary council meeting, clung on to power by 31 votes to 29, and one of those in his support was Cllr Skyrme-Blackhall.

“This anonymous smear campaign started just hours after the crunch vote, which Simpson survived,” said Cllr Williams.

Cllr Williams said that 'Moanalot' also included a photograph featuring Cllr Skyrme-Blackhall and Labour party members in Tenby. Just two days later, on May 20, a new Facebook page was created with the title ‘Not Another Blogger,’ again referring to alleged Labour links, said Cllr Williams.

Cllr Skyrme-Blackhall has said the picture was merely her attending an event as the town's mayor.

“In relation to the picture and the rubbish in the blogs from ‘Moanalot’ and ‘Not another Blogger’ – it is quite simple," she said. "The Minister for Health [Eluned Morgan MS] was visiting and it was an opportunity to show her the excellent work done at a local drop-in centre and food bank."

The councillor accused of being behind ‘Moanalot’ page has been contacted by the Local Democracy Reporting Service for comment.