Isle of Wight residents will pay £7 more for the fire service precept this year, on top of the 7.1% Police precept increase and the 5% Isle of Wight Council increase.
Previously, the amount residents pay towards the fire authority on the Island was included in the main council tax allowance as it was run by the Isle of Wight Council.
Now, with the combination of Hampshire’s and the Isle of Wight’s fire and rescue services, a new fire precept has been set for Island residents.
To bring the amount Isle of Wight residents pays up to the same base level as Hampshire residents, an alternative notional amount was agreed by the Secretary of State.
Before any increase to the fire precept, a Band C property will have to pay £6.11 to level the baseline across both sides of the Solent.
Today (Wednesday), the shadow Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Authority (HIWFRA) unanimously approved a 1.99% increase to the fire tax for all Hampshire and Isle of Wight taxpayers.
A Band C property will have to pay £1.22 more a year for the fire authority — a total of £62.60 a year. Compared to how much they paid for a fire and rescue service in the last financial year (2020/21), an Isle of Wight Band C property will pay £7.33 more for the combined authority.
From 1st April, the HIWFRA will move out of its shadow capacity, controlling emergency fire responses across 14 local authority areas.
Speaking at the shadow HIWFRA meeting, Cllr Dave Stewart, the leader of the Isle of Wight Council, said the combined fire authority will provide a positive contribution to the Island, with investment already approved for the fire estate – although details have not been publically released.
The fire precept will be collected at the same time as the main council tax, in the same way it is done for the Police and town and parish council precepts.
The main council tax increase — which looks set to be 4.99% – is due to be finalised on 24th February.
Why don’t they just double our council tax and be done with it. Tossers
Oh, and where is our reduction in light of the fact that the IOW council no longer seems to be paying the fire service if Hampshire now are. The increases this year are a total shambles.
To bring the amount Isle of Wight residents pays up to the same base level as Hampshire residents, an alternative notional amount was agreed by the Secretary of State.
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This just goes to show how much these low lives care about the ability of people to pay for this admin change of theirs – they do not care if you cannot put food on your table – pay the tax peasants and go to the food bank
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they had another option – reduce the amount paid by hampshire residents to the lower level paid by the island, as a gesture of goodwill to hampshire in these troubling times.
Yet another precept increasing the burden. Just the town councils next. Sure they’ll try to have no increase this year.
Why should our “base level” be the same as mainland Hants? Do we get the same service? In case of urgent need, can we draw upon neighbouring resources/assets which are just down the M3/A30/A3M etc? No, of course not. Did Dynamic Dave make that argument? Have a guess…
Elections in May, Dave. Time to grab that Golden Goodbye?
So by merging with Hampshire they have made it more expensive? Shows just how little they care about how people are supposed to afford to pay these increases.
Talk about how they are trying to save money yet they’re making stuff like this more expensive, and its us the normal working class that are paying for it.
Just waiting for the town council precept now I’m sure they’ll also want to dip there hands into all our pockets aswell.
Tell you what I’ll leave my wallet on a table in county hall, let all the council services take what they want and let it be done with.
Tossers.
Please Please Please,
hurry up and come May elections, this bunch on the council seem to think all the islanders are rolling in cash….We have one of the lowest paid workforce in the country and thousands are struggling to live on peanuts. I hope all the people who bother to vote in the next election give this tripe of a council a massive elbow.
Exactly we need to rid of them otherwise itll be to late and it will be way to expensive to realistically live here.
I will be sending all my bills to the council as they will have more of my money than I me. Thanks to the money grabbing totally unfit to hold office head of the council and his overpaid cronies