Pembrokeshire was set up to take over the functions of the Pembrokeshire Quarter Sessions. This and the administrative county of Pembrokeshire were abolished under the Local Government Act 1972, with Pembrokeshire forming two districts of the new county of Dyfed: South Pembrokeshire and Preseli – the split being made at the request of local authorities in the area. In 1996, under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, the county of Dyfed was broken up into its constituent parts, and Pembrokeshire has been a unitary authority since then. In 2017 Pembrokeshire County Council had 60 members and no political party in overall
Pembrokeshire have developed along the Milford Haven Waterway and the county has attracted other major ventures. In 2016, the Rt. Hon. Stephen Crabb, then Welsh Secretary, commented in a government press release: ""...with a buoyant local economy, Pembrokeshire is punching above its weight across the UK."" Until the 12th century, a great extent of Pembrokeshire was virgin woodland. Clearance in the lowland south began under Anglo-Flemish colonisation and under mediaeval tenancies in other areas. Such was the extent of development that by the 16th century there was a shortage of timber in the county. Little is known about mediaeval farming methods,