Homeowners in Pembrokeshire are paying more than ten times the amount of stamp duty than they were a decade ago, new figures reveal.

Paul Davies, AM for Preseli Pembrokeshire, is highlighting the shocking rise in the Government stealth tax and calling for a cut in stamp duty for first time buyers.

The average house price in the county has risen from £65,618 in May 1997 to £251,885 ten years later.

"If you bought a house in Pembrokeshire in 1997 you paid an average of £656 in stamp duty but if you bought one last year that figure had gone up to £6,891," said Mr Davies.

"We have seen a huge increase in house prices but no similar increase in the threshold of stamp duty with the result that the Government has reaped an enormous stealth tax," he added.

Figures recently revealed that house prices in the county are almost seven times higher than the average wage.

The Welsh Conservatives are now calling for a series of measures to help the housing market, including abolishing the new red tape of Home Information Packs and cutting stamp duty for first-time buyers.

Mr Davies said: "Gordon Brown has hiked taxes on family homes across Pembrokeshire year on year. Labour has increased the burden of stamp duty by stealth, punishing people who have invested in and improved their homes.

"At a time when the housing market is so fragile, we need practical measures to help people move home – such as abolishing the red tape of Home Information Packs and cutting stamp duty for first-time buyers who are suffering the most."