Proposals could see the merger of fire services across the region

The proposals, unveiled on Tuesday by Northamptonshire County Council, could see the two counties' control rooms merged.

The plan follows a Government White Paper on the fire service which considers possible regional fire services for the East of England and the East Midlands.

Chief Fire Officer for Northamptonshire David Archer on Tuesday outlined changes to the way the county's Fire and Rescue Service could be run in future.

But he admitted there was likely to be opposition from the Fire Brigades Union (FBU).

We are not scared of change, but we are concerned with downgrading public protection and loss of members' jobs Gary Mitchell, secretary of Northamptonshire Fire Brigade's Union

"The union has opposed any change to fire controls on a national basis for some years now," he said.

"However, the White Paper is very clear in giving its direction to fire authorities.

"I would hope that the union would now work with us to ensure that this is a positive opportunity for their staff as well as an improvement to service delivery to the public".

Gary Mitchell, secretary of Northamptonshire FBU, told BBC News Online firefighters were concerned that a merged control room would lack the local knowledge of staff and slow down response time.

"Big is not always betters. We are not scared of change, but we are concerned with downgrading public protection and loss of members' jobs," he said.

Tom Neal, a spokesman for the Leicestershire FBU, said members would also have concerns about any merger plans.

He said: "Obviously if there is less local accountability, the fire authority could become like the health authorities - faceless quangos."