Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Authority plans to raise the fire portion of council tax by £5, calling the increase “essential” to keep services running.

If approved on February 10, the rise would represent an increase of 5.69 per cent for Band D properties from April 2026, taking the annual charge for the two counties’ fire and rescue service to £92.84.

The report, which will be presented to members, says the increase is “essential to the authority’s financial sustainability”.

Even with the maximum council tax rise allowed, the service is still forecasting a £2.197 million shortfall in 2026/27.

Rather than making immediate cuts to frontline services, officers plan to close the gap using a one-year package of temporary measures, while longer-term savings are developed.

The proposed tax rise, together with growth in the council tax base, would raise an extra £4.204 million.

This would help cover inflation, rising costs and new service pressures, but would not be enough on its own to balance the budget.

To make up the remaining shortfall, the authority plans to rely on a series of mainly one-off measures.

These include a £1.2 million temporary reduction in contributions to capital reserves and a further £600,000 from lower capital financing costs, as planned borrowing has not yet been fully taken out.

Further savings include £267,000 from delaying the running costs of a new control system and a £130,000 draw from the Budget Equalisation Reserve.

Together, these measures would allow the authority to set a balanced budget for 2026/27 without introducing new savings targets beyond those already agreed, totalling £3.318 million across 2025/26 and 2026/27.

However, the plan only balances the books in the short term. The authority is already forecasting a longer-term funding gap of £2.702 million in 2027/28, rising to £2.926 million the following year.

The proposals will be discussed by the fire authority on Tuesday, February 10.