A key meeting is taking place this afternoon to decide whether Wiltshire Fire and Rescue will merge with Dorset in a money-saving exercise.

Over the next few years, both services are facing significant budget cuts which it is estimated will leave them out of cash and bankrupt by 2017.

To avoid major frontline cuts, such as redundancies to firefighters and the closure of stations, it is being proposed the two services join to become one larger force.

Last week Dorset Fire Authority voted unanimously to push ahead with the merger and today Wiltshire Fire Authority will be asked to do the same.

A three-month public consultation was held into which of three possible directions for Wiltshire Fire Service to go.

These included closer work with other agencies, such as the police, and partnership with Dorset but not a full merger.

However, neither of these delivered the savings needed to avoid a reduction in cuts. The merger would do this and received overwhelming support in the consultation.

Swindon Council agreed to support the merger in its response to the consultation but Wiltshire said it could not support any of the options until more details were known.

The merger will find £5m in savings, although there will be a small increase in the fire precept, meaning residents will see a slight increase in council tax bills to ensure Wiltshire and Dorset are paying the same amount.

The Fire Authority, which is the service’s governing body, will vote on which option to go with.

In total there are 13 members, with four Swindon councillors and nine from Wiltshire.

Chairman Chris Devine (Con, Winterslow) said: “This is by far the most serious decision the Wiltshire Fire Authority has ever taken.

“It is something myself and all the members take incredibly seriously and we will be using all our experience as elected representatives to come to a decision.

“The public consultation threw up very important points which had not previously been raised which I certainly have found very useful and put a new perspective on certain things.

“With the consultation complete and the business case now out there we have all the information we need to make an informed decision.

“There will be a discussion and we may decide whether to vote on all three options or just the one, depending on how things go.”

If the merger gets the go ahead then it is hoped to have everything completed by April 2016.