I am delighted to secure this Adjournment debate on the important subject of firework nuisance.

I have a truly remarkable constituent, Teresa Kulkarni, who has been an indefatigable, resolute, determined and passionate campaigner on firework nuisance for many years. She recently collected 129,397 signatures for a petition that calls for an outright ban on the retail sale of fireworks, and for fireworks to be restricted to licensed public displays. On Wednesday afternoon, my hon. Friends the Members for Kettering (Mr. Hollobone) and for Shrewsbury and Atcham (Daniel Kawczynski) and I accompanied Teresa Kulkarni and representatives of other organisations to No. 10, where we presented the petition in two large suitcases—I do not know what security staff thought we were doing. We had to wait until the Japanese ambassador left No. 10 before politely knocking on the door. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister did not come answer himself, as he was awaiting the arrival of a Head of State, whom he obviously thought was more important. I understand and sympathise, as our petition consisted of many bundles of paper. My hon. Friend the Member for Kettering will testify that it really was a most impressive performance. We handed that huge petition over to the perplexed—and good-humoured—staff at No. 10. Tomorrow night, assuming the Journal Office approves it, I shall present a copy of the petition that Teresa Kulkarni presented to No. 10 to the House. However, tonight I am fortunate in having secured this Adjournment debate, because I am very concerned about firework nuisance. I have every sympathy with the outstanding determination and tenacity of my constituent, Teresa Kulkarni. She is concerned about the impact that firework nuisance is having on hundreds of thousands of people throughout the land.

We all know that the firework season is getting ever longer, and we all know that fireworks have a very damaging impact on people, structures and animals. I want to discuss those categories. When I describe to Members some of the examples that have been brought to my attention of the level of nuisance that occurs, they will realise that there are problems not only in a few isolated cases, but across the country.

I received an e-mail this morning from Teresa Kulkarni about last night—5 November. She said that she had been to a house in King John avenue in King’s Lynn where there is a large rocket-stick wedged in a hole that it made in the guttering. The gentleman who owns the house was out at the time, and the rocket landed in the guttering near to the room where he keeps his computer. That is a frightening example of what can happen during the firework season. Let me give another example: at 4.30 yesterday, a firework rocket landed on the roof of a house in Springwood in my constituency.

My researcher, Mr. Harry Buxton, joined me recently on an internship. He was travelling on a 211 bus along the King’s road. As the bus stopped at a junction, a very large firework exploded in front of the windscreen. The bus driver was forced to take evasive action and swerved right across the junction; he cut across the oncoming part of the highway. Mercifully, there was no car or pedestrian in the way of the bus, but if there had been, there undoubtedly would have been a very unpleasant accident.

I have some other examples. On 2 November 2006, there was a headline, “Two injured in bus firework blast”. The report states:

“A man and a young child have been treated in hospital after a firework exploded on a bus.”

When fireworks go off in confined spaces, they can have a devastating impact.

Members know that we are not allowed to use props in this House, but if I could use a prop, I would hold up a photograph of an “ER” post box located on Holbeach bank. It is a traditional cast-iron post box that would probably originally have had a “GR” sign on it, before it had an “ER” sign. On Sunday 29 October, a hooligan put a powerful banger into that post box, and it was absolutely ripped apart. If anyone had been in the vicinity, they would have been seriously injured, because shrapnel flew across the road. Indeed, all the mail in the post box was seriously damaged, and some of it destroyed.

I have looked at other headlines, and things get worse. In the past week, there have been several incidents of fireworks being posted through people’s letterboxes. I have an example that happened in Redditch. The article states:

“Police are investigating an arson attack on a house after a lit firework was pushed through a letterbox, causing damage estimated to cost £600.”

A newspaper headline from Rushden in Northamptonshire, which is near the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Kettering (Mr. Hollobone), said, “Letterbox firework scorches door.” The article continued:

“Police are investigating an arson attack after a lit rocket was posted through the letterbox”

of someone’s house. A headline dated 29 October, concerning Victoria road, Wellingborough, said, “Letterbox firework damages shop.”

The article continued:

“An investigation has begun after an arson attack.”

A headline from a Nuneaton paper, dated 31 October, said, “Yobs throw firework into garage of 93-year-old.” A 93-year-old man was taken to hospital after yobs threw a firework into his garage, starting a blaze. A headline from 3 November said, “Firework thrown into restaurant.” Four people were arrested over allegations of a firework incident in a restaurant in Peterborough, which is very near my constituency and that of my hon. Friend the Member for Kettering.

That is bad enough—until one considers the individuals who have been badly injured by fireworks. On 3 November, Mr. Robert Mepham, who is 65 and suffers from very bad arthritis, had a firework thrown at him when he was walking near his home in Spinney Hills, Leicester. A firework was also thrown from a car at a postman in Soulton road, Telford, Shropshire; the postman was injured and taken to hospital. Another incident occurred in the west midlands when an individual who was minding his own business walking down the street had a firework thrown at him. It struck him in the face and he was seriously injured. He suffered burns and blistering and blurred vision, and was taken to hospital.

More than 1,000 people are injured every year as a result of firework nuisance. That is a very serious situation, but there is also a serious impact on animals. I have examined some of the cases involving animals—defenceless creatures that cannot help themselves and pets that have put great faith in human beings. Pets are very loyal. I own a labrador myself, and I have owned horses and cattle in the past. Indeed, I have owned all sorts of pets, and they have great faith in human beings. They trust us, and we owe it to them to act in a completely responsible way toward them. My hon. Friend the Member for Shrewsbury and Atcham, who was with us last Wednesday when we handed in the petition to No. 10, is involved with an equitation centre and understands horses. Horses, of all animals, show touching faith in us humans.

According to a survey of veterinarians, every year 4,500 animals are hurt by fireworks and treated for injury, of which 16 are destroyed by vets. I pay tribute to the campaign of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which has highlighted the number of firework incidents involving animals. It has a huge amount of documentation on this issue and sent me an excellent briefing entitled, “Keep The Noise Down: reduce that limit from 120 decibels to 97 decibels”. It does not want to ban the retail sale of fireworks as my constituent Mrs. Kulkarni does, but it says that there is an urgent need to reduce the noise of fireworks. It takes the view that getting the noise level down by about 23 decibels would have a profound impact, in that it would protect a lot of animals from serious nuisance and disturbance and, in many cases, injury.

Let us consider some of the animals that have suffered as a result of firework nuisance. I have done some research and looked at the papers over the past few days, and I have some examples here. One headline describes how a “Prize dog dies in firework scare”. The report continued:

“A sheepdog which represented England in trials is run over and killed after being scared by fireworks. Skerry jumped an 8ft fence”.

A roe deer or red deer stag would have trouble jumping an 8-ft fence, but Skerry managed to do so and ran into a passing car and was killed.

Another story on 23 October is headlined, “Pet cat abused in a firework horror”. The article went on:

“A cat was shot dead with an air rifle and then had its abused with a lit firework in West Yorkshire.”

In another case, on 21 October, an incident took place just across the central belt from your part of the world, Mr. Speaker. In Drylaw, Edinburgh, a headline said, “Cat scarred after firework attack”. The report began:

“A cat is recovering after an attack in which fireworks were taped to its side and set off.”

That is a despicable, appalling and unbelievable attack on an animal.

I have an example from Kettering in which an article that appeared in the local press said:

“A loud bang went off and dog bolted. That night the police returned his collar.”

The dog has not been seen since. A headline on BBC Online on 25 October said that fireworks were “turning dogs to drugs”. It said that fireworks are scaring, unsettling and psychologically damaging many dogs and cats so much so that they are now being prescribed drugs to cope with explosions.

I know that my hon. Friend the Member for Shrewsbury and Atcham is concerned about horses, and there have been there have been several examples of horses that have bolted after being frightened by fireworks that were let off near an equitation centre, stables or fields where horses were grazing. One report said:

“Fire crews were called to Coltsrock Stud Farm in Pimhole, Bury”.

That was late on Friday night where a horse had bolted. It was not only seriously traumatised, but set on fire and had to be put down.

In the case of smaller pets, one story tells of how

“Sick yobs tied a baby gerbil to a firework—then launched it into the sky.”

That case quite a lot of publicity because it was appalling.

I have some e-mails that were sent to Teresa Kulkarni, my constituent who is a tireless campaigner on the issue. One says:

“I have a much loved 8 year old Labrador who has suffered from Epilepsy since he was 3 years old.”

Every firework season that dog is in a terribly distressed state. Another e-mail describes how a pet rabbit died from a heart attack on 3 November and another e-mail from someone in the south-west tells how a dog was totally stressed out by the fireworks, bolted and was killed by a car. Another tells how a border collie was frightened by fireworks and was killed, while another describes how a dog went mad as a result of its panic and tried to dig its way under the front door in its attempt to get out of the house. Another example tells of a horse that bolted near Torquay in the west country. It broke the fencing on the stud farm and got on to the road. Only through the grace of God was no accident caused.

I have given a snapshot of some cases involving animals. They suffer enormously in the firework season––far more than many of us realise. They are defenceless pets and farm animals and every year they suffer enormously.

The firework season goes on for far too long. We all know that the fireworks season starts on 15 October and goes through to 10 November. That is the period when the sale without licence is permitted. That is a long season. A lot of people buy fireworks one year and store them illegally. Often, the season will start way before the clocks go back and will go on way beyond 10 November, which is the last date on which one can buy fireworks from a shop that does not have a licence. We know that the fireworks season goes on and on. In built-up areas, that can be particularly devastating. Driving in to where we live in south London from Norfolk last night, it was like a civil war. The bangs and explosions went on all night.

We know that there is legislation. To the Government’s credit, Bill Tynan’s private Member’s Bill became the Fireworks Act 2003. The Fireworks Regulations 2004 flowed from that legislation. I am sure that the Minister will say that there is sufficient legislation on the statute book. He will probably make the point that a number of changes have been made. To be fair to the Government, they have brought in a number of significant initiatives, such as making it much more difficult for anyone under 18 to buy fireworks, bringing in a curfew on the use of fireworks between 11 pm and 7 am and imposing a decibel limit. We had the Fireworks (Safety) (Amendment) Regulations 2004, which flowed from the Fireworks (Safety) Regulations 1997.

The Government have taken action and it has to be said that existing legislation is quite tough. For example, I gather that the Explosives Act 1875—it is not a piece of legislation with which I am familiar—makes it an offence to set off fireworks in the street. That is punishable by a fixed penalty notice attracting an upper tier fine of £80. I guess that there has probably been an inflation index. If £80 was the upper tier fine in 1875, that would be equivalent to about £20,000 now.

We also have the use of general criminal law, health and safety legislation, and environmental health legislation. Of course, it is illegal to let fireworks off in the street, to let fireworks off in an enclosed space if they are going to create a nuisance, and to fire a rocket or fireworks that are going to end up on a neighbour’s property. One could argue that the existing law is reasonably tight.

My point is simple. I strongly believe that the fireworks season goes on far too long. I put a modest suggestion to the Minister: we should have a shorter fireworks season that lasts a limited number of days either side of 5 November. During that period, it would be legal for shops without a licence to sell fireworks, for people over 18 to buy fireworks and to have a firework display in a safe place. We would have a specific fixed season. When I was helping Teresa Kulkarni with her petition, I said to the media that the season could be 10 days either side of 5 November. Teresa is against that idea because she wants an outright ban on the retail sale of fireworks. Perhaps we should have a shorter period. It could be, shall we say, eight days either side of 5 November.

If we had a specific fireworks season, everyone would know where they stood. Under existing law, one would be able to buy fireworks from shops that were not licensed. The police would be able to enforce the law in a focused way and on a much more clearly enlightened basis, because they would know what was happening and could put more resources in. The problem at the moment, with the long season, is that police resources are stretched. Every time my local police are rung up with a complaint about a fireworks nuisance incident or an incident involving an animal being frightened or injured, or a human being injured, of course they try to investigate, but there are so many incidents. The police want a much shorter season because they would then be able to enforce the law more effectively. Furthermore, the rest of the community would exert peer pressure by saying, “We have a limited season during which you can let off fireworks at a private display, but we will have zero tolerance of people who let off fireworks outside that fixed period.” Such an approach would be a satisfactory compromise.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that a poll carried out by the BBC in the north-west of England showed that 92 per cent. of people believed that there should be a total ban on the sale of fireworks, except those for organised licensed events?

The hon. Gentleman is right. Several surveys have been carried out recently. For example, in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Kettering, the Kettering Evening Telegraph organised a similar poll, which showed that the overwhelming majority of people wanted an outright ban. Many surveys and polls have indicated growing public support for such a ban. I think that it has gone up from an average of roughly 55 per cent. 10 years ago to about the 85-plus mark. That indicates that people are fed up with this nuisance and the police’s inability to do anything about it. If the Government do not act to introduce tougher legislation, the momentum behind an outright ban will become unstoppable. However, I would not like that to happen because I am not an arch-regulator. I have always believed in a laissez-faire approach towards many things in life.

Let me give an example of why it would be hypocritical of me to demand an outright ban. On Friday, my seven-year old boy said that he would like to go to a firework display. Unfortunately, we could not rearrange our plans for Saturday so that we could take him to a large display in a village near where we live, and he was very upset. My wife and I decided that we would have our own private display in my mother’s garden. The garden is large and no houses around it would be likely to be in range of falling rockets.

I went along to Tesco in Gaywood, which is in my constituency, and I was impressed by its arrangements. It had a separate firework kiosk manned by a competent member of staff. After looking at me and deciding that I was over 18, she told me that the shop had a rule in place whereby anyone who looked under 21 would be questioned. The shop was thus being extra cautious about the 18-year-old rule. When I explained that I wanted to buy some fireworks, the member of staff gave me the menu. I was able to buy a box of fireworks for £25, although because there was a buy-one-get-one-free offer, I got about £50-worth of fireworks. My wife also bought some rockets from Sainsbury’s. My 17-year-old nephew, Joshua Rowley, who was on his half term, was master of ceremonies at the display. We invited one or two local friends with children the same age as my seven-year-old, and our small family firework display brought huge pleasure to those young children.

I would not have been able to hold such a display if there had been an outright ban on the retail sale of fireworks because I would have had to apply for a licence. There are many people in my position. We do not want to be killjoys, but we are nevertheless worried about what is going on. I do not want an outright ban, but I recognise, appreciate and respect the momentum that is building behind such a ban. That is why I congratulate Teresa Kulkarni on her indefatigable campaign, which many people support. If the Government do not bring in tougher legislation along the lines that I have suggested, the momentum will become unstoppable and we will have an outright ban.

What I am suggesting is a fireworks season. I leave it to the Minister, who is an expert in these matters, to make proposals. My idea of a season stretching 10 days either side of 5 November may be too long or too short, but if we had a specific fireworks season, surely people would know where they stood, the police would be able to enforce it properly, and everyone would realise that it was a satisfactory compromise.

Outside the season, a licence would be needed. If, for example, the local parish or village wanted to have a fireworks display outside the season, it would apply for a licence. If King’s Lynn and West Norfolk borough council wanted to put on a fireworks display during the annual King’s Lynn festival, it would apply—to itself, as it happens—to get a licence. If different communities wanted to celebrate community festivals, such as the Chinese new year or Diwali, with a fireworks display, they would apply for a licence. If the Minister’s family decided that they wanted to celebrate a family wedding with a few fireworks on the village green or in a safe area, they would have to get a licence to do so outside the season. The application would be straightforward—not bureaucratic, but simple and easily understood by everyone.

I shall conclude my remarks, because we want the Minister to have plenty of time to reply, although I imagine that he will not need the whole time to half-past 10, and because I know that my hon. Friends the Members for Shrewsbury and Atcham, for Kettering, for Broxbourne (Mr. Walker) and for Lancaster and Wyre (Mr. Wallace) also want to say a few words. What I have done tonight is to illustrate to the House that we have a serious problem. Teresa Kulkarni has raised one of the largest ever petitions in this country on fireworks nuisance. She has gathered a staggering number of signatures—129,387. She is saying that we have to have an outright ban, and I respect and understand her view. I also respect and understand what the Government have done so far: they picked up Bill Tynan’s Bill and they are trying to achieve an all-party consensus on the issue. But the nuisance goes on. People are suffering, animals are suffering, and whole communities are having their lives turned upside down. Action is needed. I have suggested a sensible compromise solution to the Minister and I submit that if the Government do not accept my solution, the momentum behind an outright ban will become unstoppable and the pleasure that my young boy experienced on Saturday night at my mother’s home will be gone for ever. I look to the Minister to take action very soon.

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Norfolk (Mr. Bellingham) not only on securing tonight’s debate but on making such an excellent speech. I also congratulate his constituent, Teresa Kulkarni, who has done tremendous work in collecting such a large number of signatures on, I believe, her second petition on fireworks. The latest petition attracted 129,000 signatures and the previous one more than 90,000. She has put in a great deal of hard work in a good cause.

I rise to speak in favour of an outright ban on the retail sale of fireworks. I do so not only because I believe in a ban, but because my local newspaper, the Kettering Evening Telegraph, has called for such a ban. The Evening Telegraph should be applauded for its work in Northamptonshire on the issue. It conducted a survey of more than 800 local people, 88 per cent. of whom supported a ban on the retail sale of fireworks. Many of the national opinion polls testing political opinion conducted country-wide by MORI and other polling organisations involve about 1,000 respondents, so to get 800 respondents in the area covered by a local newspaper is truly impressive. The fact that such a large proportion are in favour of a ban sends a clear message to the Government that the mood has already turned.

There are three main issues related to the retail sale of fireworks, but all revolve around fireworks getting into the wrong hands and being used in antisocial behaviour.

I draw to the Minister’s attention a recent case from 24 October highlighted in the Evening Telegraph. Mr. Aidan Cardew, aged 25, of Mill road, Kettering, was walking home at 2.30 am following a night out with his younger brother when he was hit in the face by a firework that had been fired horizontally from a local park—

It being Ten o’clock, the motion for the Adjournment of the House lapsed, without Question put.

Motion made, and Question proposed, That this House do now adjourn.—[Jonathan Shaw.]

Mr. Cardew put up his hands to protect his face, but he suffered such severe burns that he was unable to call the police himself. A Northamptonshire police spokesman said:

“Not only was this a careless and stupid act, it underlines the danger that fireworks in the wrong hands can injure or even kill someone.”

I am sorry to tell the Minister that despite the extra restrictions brought in by the recent fireworks legislation, far too many fireworks are ending up in the wrong hands.

Even fireworks that end up in responsible hands do much damage, not only disturbing the night’s sleep of young children, particularly when fireworks are let off in areas covered by housing estates, but causing alarm, distress and harassment to animals, both domestic pets and wild animals. Animals are killed by fright caused by fireworks. Very young children are often scared witless by the loud bangs in neighbouring properties. Here we are, in 2006, effectively allowing explosives into the hands of people who are not acting responsibly towards their neighbours and causing much alarm, harassment and distress to their neighbours and to animals living nearby.

My plea to the Minister on behalf of my constituents and the readers of the Evening Telegraph is please to take on board the message and the growing level of concern. Let us have licensed displays by all means. Let us enjoy fireworks in a responsible way for a limited period of the year, but now is the time to ban the retail sale of fireworks so that we can get a grip on the problem.

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Norfolk (Mr. Bellingham) on securing the Adjournment debate. It was a great pleasure to accompany him to No. 10 Downing street to present the petition last week.

In Shrewsbury we have a famous flower show every year, at the end of which we have a huge firework display, which is licensed and very enjoyable, and many people come to it. My main concern, as my hon. Friends have stated previously, is the constant firework display that we have throughout the year.

My hon. Friend mentioned my interest in horses. Before my wife and I moved to my constituency, Shrewsbury, we ran an equestrian centre in Herefordshire, near Leominster. We had some 30 horses on livery. I will never forget the evening when some neighbours in the village decided to celebrate their daughter’s wedding with a huge firework display in the village. Hon. Members would have laughed at the image of me in my dressing gown running around after 30 horses at 1 o’clock in the morning. It was an extremely frightening moment. The horses were not only my own, but other people’s that I was looking after, and I was responsible for them and for safety outside my property if they got loose and went on to the road and into the village.

I agree with my hon. Friends and urge the Minister to consider some form of licensing so that people, especially in rural areas, are held to account for firework displays, because of the impact that they can have on farms, equestrian farms and various other types of agricultural holding, such as the one that I had.

I met the Minister during the summer on a different issue, and I find him one of the most professional and reasonable Ministers in this Labour Government. I genuinely think that he is a very good Minister. I sincerely urge him to examine this issue, about which I and many people in my constituency feel very strongly.

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Norfolk (Mr. Bellingham) on securing this important debate. I do not like playing the killjoy, and I hate the word “banning”. Nevertheless, as we have heard, the fireworks season now continues for six weeks—three weeks before 5 November and three weeks after it. I am sure that, like me, colleagues will have had people coming to their surgeries during the previous week complaining about being kept awake at all hours of the night by firework nuisances, with fireworks sometimes going off until 3 o’clock or 4 o’clock in the morning.

Fireworks used to be a symbol of fun. Yesterday evening, I gathered in Cheshunt park and golf club with tens of thousands of my constituents, and we celebrated a fantastic fireworks display. In the right place, fireworks are absolutely fabulous. On the Rosedale estate, however, they are almost weapons of intimidation. These things are launched at all hours of the day and night, they are thrown into people’s gardens and they create a huge amount of nuisance, concern and fear. We also have the spectre of Halloween and trick or treating, which coincides with 5 November at a similar time in the calendar. Several people think that it is amusing to toss fireworks at houses and to intimidate people of all ages, particularly the elderly. I would very much like the fireworks season to be shortened.

This is a huge problem for the police, who should be provided with more powers to ensure that youngsters who view fireworks as toys and weapons of intimidation feel the full force of the law. I hope that the Minister will talk to colleagues at the Home Office about that. These things are high explosives that kill and maim dozens of people every year; they need to be treated with respect, and those who do not do so should be punished by the law.

I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Norfolk (Mr. Bellingham) for introducing this debate. To be honest, the issue of fireworks is not one that fills my postbag; indeed, 5 November is not always remembered with the same fondness in my constituency as in other parts of the country, because it has a large Catholic area.

There is a gap between those who use fireworks responsibly and those who use them in the very worst environments to put fear into people and to cause damage. We need to look to the Government to provide something other than the current laissez-faire position. My hon. Friend’s proposition of a season for fireworks is probably the best way forward. I do not believe in banning most things, and I get very affronted by that word. As someone who likes to let fireworks off from time to time and make a good bang, I believe that it is important that individuals should be allowed to enjoy them when necessary—for example, at home with small children. I remember indoor fireworks, which have been banned by the European Union. We should not blanket-ban fireworks—they are an important part of celebrations and are used by different religions and communities at different times of the year. While the idea of a season is correct, we need to ensure that local communities or local authorities have control of it.

I apologise for being late for the debate. I support what has been said so far. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that the initiative taken by the Co-op and the largest British manufacturer to market less noisy fireworks could be a basis for legislation, given that most of the complaints that I get concern the volume of noise?

I am not a scientist, so I would not know how to legislate specifically on the amount of bang people get for their buck.

The best thing would be to allow local communities to have more control over these issues, and we might have an opportunity in the new Session to tag such a provision on to the local government Bill. The Government have talked about using that measure to devolve power, and this might be an appropriate example. People who live in predominantly Hindu or Catholic communities, for example, might take a different view, or have different times of year for celebrations or for placing controls on them. However, it is important to have those controls over the totally irresponsible youths who have been mentioned.

Earlier in this Session, we had an opportunity to bring in legislation that would have made offences against members of the emergency services more severe. In my neighbouring constituency of Blackpool, the fire services have just had an horrendous week in which they have been targeted on purpose by irresponsible and reckless individuals. I hoped that the Government would support that legislation—I am afraid that they did not—because it would have placed more responsibility on individuals who throw fireworks at police officers or firefighters responding to calls. It would have meant that those offences would have carried serious penalties, not just a slap on the wrist. That might have brought the responsible use of fireworks into people’s consciousness.

A total ban would not be right, however, and I would oppose any such proposal. I agree with my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Norfolk that we need to introduce the concept of a season, and to ensure that people understand that there is a time and a place for this type of celebration. As long as that is the case, we can all live in harmony, rather than throw the baby out with the bath water.

I congratulate the hon. Member for North-West Norfolk (Mr. Bellingham) on securing this timely and topical debate, and I commend his hon. Friends for their support and for taking an interest and taking part in the proceedings tonight. I also offer my commendation to the hon. Gentleman’s constituent, Teresa Kulkarni, for her campaign and her collection of 129,000 signatures, which is a considerable number. It is not quite as many as the 4 million signatures presented recently in support of the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters, but, none the less, that considerable number shows the level of support that she has.

Over the past week, millions of fireworks have been sold and used in back garden displays, with hundreds of thousands more people attending professionally organised public displays. Contacts that my officials have had with various police forces, fire services and trading standards departments indicate that, so far this year, the bonfire night season has been quiet in relative terms. However, the enjoyment of those millions is threatened, as so often is the case, by the thoughtless, selfish and, on occasion, criminal actions of a minority.

Fireworks can be fun if they are used in a responsible and sensible manner, but the actions of the minority spoil it for everyone else. It is the minority who continue to let fireworks off in the street, who buy fireworks and give them to under-18s, and who think it funny to let off fireworks in the early hours of the morning, well after the curfew has come into operation, frightening people and animals alike.

Over the past six years or so, the use and popularity of fireworks has grown. Part of that rise can be attributed to a change in the type of fireworks available to consumers. Large single-ignition multi-shot cakes were virtually unheard of before the millennium. The popularity of those fireworks can be attributed to their safety: they need to be lit only once to provide a display in a box letting off anything from 12 to 200-plus effects. Obviously, this may mean that some garden displays now have more bangs in them, as overall they contain more effects.

Fireworks do not have to focus on noise, however. Increasing numbers of displays now have a children’s display, and the popularity of lower-noise fireworks is increasing. I am told that, on Saturday night, Beckenham Round Table held a hugely popular children’s display, which was not made up of large bangs and explosions, before the main display. Such moves are to be encouraged, as they offer a sensible alternative to traditional fireworks. However, they are not everyone’s cup of tea because, for many people, much of the enjoyment of fireworks is the noise that they make.

It is important to state that much of the concern about noise and nuisance caused by fireworks could be avoided if we were all a little more neighbourly and responsible. Simply telling one’s immediate neighbours, particularly older neighbours, that one is having a back garden display so that they can take appropriate action is very easy to do. Similarly, if one is aware of neighbours who have pets or if one lives near stables or a farm, simply alerting the owner allows them to take appropriate action. Those simple steps can drastically reduce the concern and potential harm, especially to animals, caused by fireworks.

The hon. Member for North-West Norfolk referred to the private Member’s Bill on fireworks proposed by the former Member for Hamilton, South, which received cross-party and Government support and became the Fireworks Act 2003. That very important statute has helped us control and reduce the problems associated with the noise and nuisance caused by fireworks. The 2003 Act was implemented via the Fireworks Regulations 2004. Although we monitor the effectiveness of those regulations, I think that it is still rather early to consider updating or replacing them, particularly since in 2005, firework manufacturers and importers as well as retailers were required to comply with a number of new more onerous requirements on the licensing and storage arrangements of premises from which explosives, including fireworks, were stored or supplied.

The Fireworks Regulations 2004 introduced a number of new controls that have been widely welcomed by enforcement practitioners. For example, the regulations make it an offence for under-18s to possess adult fireworks in a public place and for anyone other than a fireworks, professional to possess category 4 fireworks, and require all-year-round suppliers to be licensed. The regulations also create a curfew on firework use between 11 pm and 7 am on most nights of the year, the exceptions being midnight on November 5 and 1 am on new year’s eve, the Chinese new year and Diwali night. They create a maximum noise limit of 120 dB for category 3 fireworks, which is likely to be extended to other fireworks as part of the pyrotechnics directive currently being discussed in Brussels.

The regulations also require suppliers to display a sign indicating that it is illegal to supply adult fireworks to anyone under the age of 18, and they give local licensing authorities the power to request details of all transactions of fireworks over 50 kg of explosive content, including to whom they were supplied, where the selleres obtained the fireworks and the exact weight of the transaction. Finally, in this long but important list, the regulations require importers of fireworks to notify Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs of the intended destination of the fireworks to be imported, to help ensure that fireworks are destined for legal storage and distribution.

The Minister is as courteous as ever in giving way. He has gone through the existing legislation, which I have conceded represents a very big improvement on what went before. Those measures have considerable positive aspects, but does the Minister agree that it is worth looking further into my idea of having a specific firework season? At present, we have provisions relating to non-licensed premises, so why cannot we go just a bit further and have a specific season, which would allow everyone to know exactly where they stood?

I listened very carefully to the hon. Gentleman’s speech and I will respond later to his suggestion for a licensed period for fireworks displays. I should have expressed my appreciation of the kind words expressed by the hon. Member for Shrewsbury and Atcham (Daniel Kawczynski) and also tell the hon. Member for Lancaster and Wyre (Mr. Wallace) that the Government supported the private Member’s Bill proposed by the Father of the House, my right hon. Friend the Member for Swansea, West (Mr. Williams), to deal with offences against public sector workers. I am not sure whether that was the legislation to which the hon. Gentleman referred and I would like the record to be set straight in that regard.

As I was saying, this is not where my Department’s legislative package of consumer protection ends. We also have the Fireworks (Safety) Regulations 1997, which were amended in 2004. They deal with issues such as the banning of certain fireworks like bangers, air-bombs and fireworks of erratic flight. They create the minimum age for supply at 18 and require all fireworks sold to the general public to be manufactured in compliance with the British standard—BS7114.

Alongside all that, the Health and Safety Executive is responsible for the Manufacture and Storage of Explosives Regulations 2005, which I mentioned earlier. They require all premises at which fireworks are stored to be licensed or registered with the HSE or the local authority, depending on their size.

Obviously, it is easy for me to stand here this evening and mention the list of regulations, but none of that would be any good without clarity in legislation and adequate enforcement. For many years, enforcement of much of the legislation was the responsibility of local authority trading standards departments. Now several agencies are responsible. Offences relating to the possession of fireworks and the curfew are enforced by the police, who can issue fixed penalty notices of up to £80. Trading standards officers still check up on retailers to ensure that supply is to over-18s only and that only fireworks correctly marked BS7114 are sold. In many cases, local authorities also check suppliers to ensure that fireworks are being legally and properly stored. I noted the comments of the hon. Member for North-West Norfolk about the positive experience in his local Tesco.

Again, I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on securing this timely debate. I hope that he will be somewhat reassured that we take fireworks, their safety and use most seriously. The Government believe that the new regulations need time to show that they can work. The House has agreed that new regulations are required because there is public disquiet. I assure hon. Members who have contributed that I take those matters seriously and I am sure that that applies to the rest of the Government. Those regulations will be kept under close review. As the hon. Gentleman said, we have appreciated that there is cause for concern; that is the reason for the new regulations. We need time to ascertain whether they will help. If they do not, I am sure that we shall revert to them in due course.

Question put and agreed to.

Adjourned accordingly at Twenty-one minutes past Ten o’clock.