Emergency services in Northamptonshire recorded at least 35 incidents involving fireworks in the week of Bonfire Night

Firefighters in Northamptonshire attended 12 firework and bonfire related incidents from November 1 to November 7 and Northamptonshire Police received 23 reports of incidents on Bonfire Night alone (November 5).

Of the incidents firefighters attended, eight of these were involving bonfires and four of them were involving fireworks. Incidents included a wheelie bin set alight, a discarded sofa thought to have been ignited by a firework, a stray firework setting a shed on fire and another stray firework setting a pine tree aflame.

Northamptonshire Police control room received a total of 23 calls regarding fireworks and bonfires but, of those reports, officers attended 10 incidents. Police confirmed that these cases consisted of anti-social use of fireworks, underage use of fireworks and lockdown breaches.

Emergency services, at this time of year, usually struggle immensely in terms of capacity, however, figures regarding bonfire and firework related incidents were reported to have fallen this year, in comparison to previous years.

Director of Public Health Northamptonshire, Lucy Wightman, said: “There were fewer than normal reported incidents that actually related to fires themselves or fireworks. We know that a number of organised displays were put off and quite rightly so.

“We were concerned that more people would be undertaking events themselves in their back gardens and there was a clear concern about that but we are pleased to report that there were fewer incidents than normal.”

Superintendent Elliot Foskett, at Northamptonshire Police, added: “Our fire and rescue service colleagues were fully prepared and led the way really on it for us but we had extra resources on should it become an issue for us but we were able to cope really well this time.”

With Bonfire Night, comes the topic that has been widely debated by the general public in the UK for years: should fireworks be banned from being sold to the public and reserved only for controlled public displays?

We put this question forward on a Twitter poll, which received a total of 1368 votes. Of those responses, 67.8 per cent of readers believe that fireworks should be banned from being sold to the public, whilst 28.7 per cent disagree and the remaining 3.4 per cent are unsure.

One commenter on Facebook, who believes that fireworks should continue to be sold to the public, said: “We always have a firework display in our garden for 20 years now and never had any issues. If you are safe and considerate then I don't see the problem.

“We always do it on the 5th November and start early to make sure we don't finish too late. Of course, there is always a very small minority that misbehave with them but that happens with everything in life. Shouldn't lose a tradition because of a few that spoil it for everyone else.”

Another commenter, who thinks that fireworks should not be sold to the public, said: “There is a great saying: ‘when you know better, then do better.’ We know fireworks are bad for the environment, trigger people who have experienced trauma - in particular: war, conflict and domestic violence - cause distress for animals including pets.

“We need to move away from ‘what’s in it for me’, ‘I like’ or ‘it doesn’t hurt me’. We need to work towards caring about other people and the community we are a part of.”

Common arguments that support banning the sale of fireworks to the public are concerns for animal welfare and the mental health of those detrimentally affected by loud noises as well as fireworks having an adverse effect on the environment.

Many who spoke out against the ban suggested potential solutions of using noiseless fireworks, only selling smaller fireworks to the public or only allowing the public to let off fireworks on Bonfire Night and the weekend closest to the annual commemoration.

To look at a case study of a country that has implemented a ban on consumer fireworks, Australia did this in 2009 with the exception of the Northern Territory and Tasmania. Research carried out by the Director-General of Education, Communities and Justice for the Scottish Government showed that the number of fireworks related offences reported to or made known to Australian police declined since the ban.

Although, the number of firework seizures carried out by police in the Australian Capital Territory has been largely unchanged since the ban was implemented.

The Northern Territory only allows fireworks to be purchased on chosen days between particular times and Tasmania requires people to apply for a permit to hold a fireworks display.

Firework displays are loved and enjoyed by people of all ages to celebrate Guy Fawkes Night, Diwali and New Year. Whilst implementing a ban on selling fireworks to the public might tackle issues surrounding underage, widespread and anti-social use, it is yet to be seen if the UK Government will consider alternative solutions to tackle the adverse effects of fireworks on animals, the environment and noise pollution.