Sale of Fireworks

Gordon McKee Excerpts

Monday 19th January 2026 Westminster Hall

[Iqbal Mohamed]

I completely support the hon. Member’s call for firework-free zones. I have in my constituency urban, industrial and rural areas and there are places where fireworks are not appropriate and cause more harm in certain areas, so I completely support that call.

[Gordon McKee (Glasgow South) (Lab)]

The hon. Member is being very generous in allowing interventions; I thank him for that and for his passionate speech. Like him, I have had many constituents get in touch about the havoc created for months, not just on bonfire night, but around the year, by fireworks. They are asking Glasgow city council to take more action, and to put on public displays so that people can enjoy the fireworks without disrupting neighbours and communities. Does he agree that that is the sensible thing to do, and will he recognise that it is often local community councils, including in my case Pollokshaws & Eastwood community council, that bring issues caused by firework-related disorder to the fore?

[Iqbal Mohamed]

I agree that council-approved, community-organised events bring people together. Those who are going know what they are going to, and any pets that will be affected can be kept away from that area for that period. The timing of those displays is also critical. There should be a watershed, whereby fireworks are allowed beyond a certain time of day. I fully support the hon. Member’s acknowledgment of the role of councils in helping communities to enjoy fireworks in a responsible and less damaging way.

We have heard that fireworks can be equally distressing for people, including veterans with PTSD, autistic and neurodivergent individuals, young children and the elderly. For those people, loud and unexpected noise can provoke severe anxiety. Worse still are the routinely reported cases of emergency workers being attacked with fireworks. Those impacts are not confined to a single night, but repeated over weeks and months, creating prolonged periods of stress. The harms that emerge from fireworks are not hypothetical—they are recurring, predictable and preventable.

The petitions do not call for some totalitarian overreach by the state by pushing for an outright ban. They recognise the cultural importance of fireworks in bringing communities together, but rightfully argue that public access, in its current form, is outdated and irresponsible.

There was an incident in my constituency during the last bonfire night—well, not a night; it is more like weeks—when a firework rocket had been let off at the wrong angle and pierced the windscreen of a parked car. Thankfully, nobody was hurt, but the rocket was lodged in the windscreen. I do not know what the owner’s insurance company said about that, but that could have been a child, a human being or an animal, and the results would have been catastrophic.

Other European countries have introduced more stringent restrictions, leading to fewer injuries and continued public support. Even within the UK, Scotland and Northern Ireland have stricter regulations than England. Alternatives such as organised displays, quieter fireworks and modern light or drone shows harnessing technological developments are increasingly popular and far less harmful. Responsible celebration should not come at the expense of animals, vulnerable individuals or community wellbeing.

I therefore urge the Government to listen carefully to this recurring debate. It is the first one I have taken part in; I was not able to take part last year, but I know from research that this subject comes around every year, and it is really important that we do something about it. I urge the Government to listen carefully to the petitioners, to conscientious animal welfare experts and to those who diligently advocate for persons with disabilities, and to bring forward meaningful reform that strikes a better balance—

Oral Answers to Questions

Gordon McKee Excerpts

Tuesday 18th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Martin McCluskey]

When I came to this brief, I too was shocked at the extent of the failures of the external wall insulation scheme under ECO4. We have set out the actions that we are taking to ensure that properties are remediated at no cost to the householder. Looking to the future system, the three principles that I believe we should follow are that work should be done right the first time; the system should be simple and easy to navigate from the consumer’s point of view; and when things go wrong—I do not want them to, but when they do—there needs to be swift remediation through the system to ensure that it delivers for consumers.

[Gordon McKee (Glasgow South) (Lab)]

9. What assessment he has made of the potential impact of clean power on energy sovereignty.

[The Minister for Energy (Michael Shanks)]

Clean power is the route to energy security and energy independence for the United Kingdom. For far too long, families have faced high energy bills thanks to our exposure to international fossil fuel markets over which we have no control. Through our clean power mission, we are ending that situation by rolling out clean, home-grown power that we control.

[Gordon McKee]

Since Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, energy bills have gone up because we are reliant on international gas markets. That means that families in Glasgow are paying more for their heating because of factors totally outside their control. What are the Government doing to ensure that Britain has control of its own energy supply?

[Michael Shanks]

My hon. Friend is right to say that his constituents in Glasgow—and constituents right across the country—have faced sky-high energy bills because of our exposure to fossil fuels. Although very little Russian gas came into our system, we remained exposed to the volatility of the international markets.

The Opposition want us to go back to the fossil fuel casino and hope that this time we get a better hand, but we are determined to protect the public of this country in the long run from those price spikes and to ensure that we have energy security because of clean power grown here in the UK, delivered by jobs that we are investing in. That will help to remove the volatility that so many of our constituents have faced for too long—energy security, good jobs and tackling the climate crisis.