Hampshire and Isle of Wight fire authorities merger complete

Under the plans, the 11 stations on the island will receive £3m

Two fire services have merged in a bid to operate more efficiently with smaller budgets.

Isle of Wight's fire service has merged with Hampshire Fire Authority, meaning its firefighters are no longer under the control of the island's council.

The new Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service was due to have started operating last year but the merger was delayed.

Islanders will see stations upgraded but will also pay higher council tax.

The new service, which will be run from the mainland, said the merger would "not affect" the "duty of the services to respond to emergencies".

"There is increasing pressure on all fire and rescue authorities to ensure they are operating in the most efficient and effective way and this is particularly important due to reducing budgets," it added.

Under the plans, the 11 fire stations on the island will get £3m to bring them in line with mainland standards.

Of the 311 people who responded to a public consultation on the plan, 53% were in favour of a merger

Islanders' council tax to the combined authority will increase by £3.74 to bring the cost in line with residents in Hampshire.

A report into the merger said a larger fire service "would allow for the alignment of safety campaigns and greater consistency of safety messages to the public".

The employment contracts of all existing employees of the two fire and rescue services have been transferred to a new combined authority.

The island's fire service was originally founded in 1948.