Philip Hollobone
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Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con)
I congratulate those who signed the petition, because it raises an issue that is of genuine concern up and down the country—not least in Kettering. I am disappointed that I was not able to hear the opening speech of my hon. Friend the Member for Northampton South (David Mackintosh), but I know it will have been outstanding, and I promise to read it tomorrow in Hansard.
There is great merit in going the whole hog and banning fireworks, and the Government should look seriously at doing that. At the very least, I would expect them to produce a proper paper outlining the pros and cons of such a ban. If we put the issue to people in a referendum—I am not advocating that, but were we to do that—we might surprisingly find a majority in favour of banning fireworks, largely because of the nuisance and distress that they cause to pets, but also because of the nuisance and disturbance they cause to schoolchildren. It is outrageous that anyone can let fireworks off in a built-up area on a school evening, when children are meant to be asleep, ready for the next school day.
Things have of course moved on from the time of my grandfather. He was an orphan growing up in south London. On bonfire night, the superintendent went around the orphanage with a bucket containing a series of fireworks, and each child was told to pick one out and to go and light it. That was in the late 1800s and I know it is not like that now, but individual fireworks are extremely dangerous. They are a type of explosive, and it is not safe to have mini-displays in back gardens. I think there is great merit in saying that all fireworks displays need to be licensed with a licensed operator.
The other issue to consider is that, frankly, amateur family-organised fireworks displays in people’s back gardens are basically rubbish. They have only a few fireworks, which do not go very high. They last a couple of minutes, and that is it, whereas an organised display has super-duper fireworks that do everything one could possibly imagine in all the colours of the rainbow and in all sorts of different patterns. They go extremely high, make fantastic noises and it is great fun. It lasts 20 to 25 minutes with a well-organised display. That is how fireworks should be displayed and appreciated. It should not just be a handful of fireworks launched by an enthusiastic dad to impress the kids in his back garden.
We have heard that 114 people go to hospital each year as a result of fireworks-related accidents. I am surprised by that, and I question the veracity of that figure. I am sure that the hon. Member for Poplar and Limehouse (Jim Fitzpatrick), who is a former fireman, agrees that that number is probably a lot higher. We have all read of very distressing cases where very small children have lost eyes or been caused serious burns and injuries because a fireworks display went wrong at home. Accidents of course happen with organised displays, too, but it is far less frequent. In this country we are privileged to have some fantastic fireworks companies and operators who organise magnificent displays, and we should encourage that. Were we to ban fireworks from domestic sale and say that all fireworks displays should be licensed with a proper operator, that would encourage the number of licensed displays in this country. Far from being bad news for the fireworks industry, it could be very good news.
The other point is that fireworks are of course distressing for animals. I have a feeling that those who like to have an amateur display in the back garden think it is upsetting only a few people, but they do not see the distressed dogs cowering in the corner of the living room. Responses to noise are one of the most primitive in-built instincts that all animals have. As human beings, we can be frightened by noise, but we can rationalise it, understand it and overcome it. Very few animals can do that. People who are operating these back garden displays do not see the small dogs, the large dogs or the cats—you name it—cowering in the corner petrified at the bangs going off outside.
Fireworks are great if they can be seen and if they are good, but they are universally awful if they can only be heard. Fireworks have to be seen to be appreciated; it is not possible to appreciate just the noise. Whenever somebody has a family firework display, hundreds of animals in the vicinity in a built-up area will be terrified for however long that display lasts.
The Government insist that children attend school every day, get their homework done and get the right grades, but how can we expect children to perform well at school if they are woken up at 9.30, 10 or 10.30 at night by an amateur firework display in the neighbouring street? They will probably wake up distressed; they might find it difficult to get back to sleep; and they will certainly not be as right as rain when they wake up for school the next day.
Angela Smith
The hon. Gentleman is making an excellent speech and showing a refreshing independence of mind in calling for regulation and indeed a ban on an activity such as this. His comments about the noise and the spectacle itself underline the point that we cannot drive fireworks underground by restricting their use to certain times of the year. It is impossible to drive the use of fireworks underground; they are seen and heard, so it is possible to police restrictions on the use of fireworks at certain times of the year.
Mr Hollobone
The hon. Lady makes a very good point. As a former special constable under the police parliamentary scheme, I know a little about trying to enforce rules and regulations. Often it is difficult, but she is right; when it comes to fireworks, it is relatively straightforward, although not in every case. I have had the experience of trying to track down where a very loud noise was coming from in a local area, and sometimes it is more difficult than people think. However, I managed to do it. It is possible, especially with other officers in attendance. It is also possible to draw on local intelligence from neighbours. The hon. Lady is therefore right to say that it is possible to enforce restrictions.
A ban is simple and understandable. If I were drawing up the legislation, I would prescribe days in the year when it is permitted to have licensed firework displays: Guy Fawkes night, Chinese new year, Diwali and the Queen’s 90th birthday, for example. At all other times fireworks would not be allowed, and I would have an absolute proscription on letting off fireworks during a school evening.
Encouraging people to notify their local area is very well meaning, but in practice it will not happen and will not be enforceable. We all know that there are responsible local firework displays organised on a small basis. One was organised by my local church not long ago. The volunteers from the church were well meaning. They put up notices in the local area that said what time the display would be and how long it would last. That is great, but there would still have been lots of animals in the local area distressed by the noise.
Jim Fitzpatrick
The hon. Gentleman mentioned that he was a special constable; he is also a graduate of the fire scheme. As my hon. Friend the Member for Penistone and Stocksbridge has outlined, the hon. Gentleman is directly challenging the Government. Is that just from his time as a special constable or because of his experience from the fire scheme? Or does he want a ban because he is a constituency MP listening to complaints from constituents?
Mr Hollobone
The hon. Gentleman brings to this debate the enormous benefit of his long service with the London fire brigade. He probably came across pretty dramatic fireworks instances, and he will know that the risk to people and property from the improper use of fireworks is a common complaint among firefighters. In a poll of firefighters I would be surprised if there were not a big majority in favour of banning them because they are simply too risky. The fireworks industry in this country would benefit from a ban on the domestic sale of fireworks because we could then develop the very good reputation that a lot of the licensed operators have for fantastic displays. If people knew that they could see fireworks only at a licensed display, I think fireworks would become more popular.
Sir Alan Meale
The hon. Gentleman’s analogies are interesting. He talks about amateur backyard ventures by parents and huge displays at community events such as we have had at Westminster. Back-garden displays are likely to keep children up and not going to school the following day, as indeed are the very large bangs from organised professional displays. The one thing we all know, which is why we are having this debate, is that they all scare the living daylights out of animals, whether pets or wildlife. How can he justify saying that we should organise regular and larger professional events? We should ban them.
Mr Hollobone
The hon. Gentleman makes a good point in his own way, but I would not go as far as him in banning them altogether. I do not believe that a complete ban on firework displays would enjoy popular support in this country. I do not think that that would get a majority of votes in a referendum. However, there could be a majority of votes for banning the domestic sale of fireworks. I can reconcile the question he asks by saying that there would be more fantastic licensed displays on the specific days when they were allowed throughout the year: for example, on Guy Fawkes night, Chinese new year, Diwali and the Queen’s birthday. Whatever the event, I envisage more displays of better quality just on those days. Most pet owners in this country would recognise that as a reasonable solution, so they would need to worry about this issue only on certain days during the year.
Sir Alan Meale
It is bizarre that we are here in the Palace of Westminster discussing whether we should have large bangs and firework displays when we all know that they came about only because of a guy called Guy Fawkes who initiated it all.
Mr Hollobone
The hon. Gentleman makes a very good point. Of course, this is where the original Gunpowder Plot took place, so perhaps it is apposite that we should be having this debate here. I readily agree with him.
I hope that the Government do not dismiss the petition as simply another House of Commons petition signed by just over 100,000 people who have a particular bee in their bonnet. I think that the issue is bigger than the petition suggests it is.
Jim Shannon
The hon. Gentleman was not here when I made my contribution and referred to Northern Ireland where we have a licensed system organised by the council and the Police Service of Northern Ireland. The system seems to work. It is regulated and controlled. We have a system that works and people can enjoy fireworks. I am not sure whether the hon. Gentleman and I are at odds on this, but I want to see balance in the debate. I want the opportunity to use fireworks and I want protection for animals. I believe that it is possible to achieve that. We have done it in Northern Ireland. Why can we not do that here?
Mr Hollobone
The hon. Gentleman always seeks balance in a debate. I am disappointed that I missed his contribution, but I know that I will not have to wait too long before chancing upon another one, which I am sure will be of his usual high standard. He makes a good point. Often we can learn from Northern Ireland about how to do things. The issue is more serious than indicated by the great numbers who signed the petition. Were we to ask the British people to weigh up the pros and cons and consider banning the domestic sale of fireworks and have only licensed firework displays, I think a majority in this country—a majority in Kettering—would vote for that.