Isle of Wight ferry services Isle of Wight ferry services There are currently three different ferry companies that operate vessels carrying passengers and, on certain routes, vehicles across the Solent, the stretch of sea that separates the Isle of Wight from mainland England. These are Wightlink, Red Funnel and Hovertravel. Since the Isle of Wight was separated from mainland Britain, probably about 7000 years ago, vessels have transported people and goods across the Solent. However the earliest record of an Isle of Wight ferry service is from 1420 when the Lord of the Manor in Ashey was responsible for boats crossing between Portsmouth and Ryde.
Politics of the Isle of Wight single member constituencies and 1 double member constituency. The local council elections were held on 5 May 2005, the same date as the general election of that year. A local referendum on the issue of a directly-elected mayor of the Isle of Wight was held at the same time as the local elections - this failed to pass, with 37,097 against to 28,786 for. "Prior to 1995, these results are for Isle of Wight County Council." The Isle of Wight voted 62% to leave the European Union in the 2016 EU referendum, compared with 52% nationally. The Isle of Wight