Time to outlaw noisy fireworks and stop terrifying pets and livestock - Jayne Dowle

In his terror at the ridiculously loud bangs that sounded constantly for what felt like hours, he ended up panicking so much he pulled off half the door-frame in the living room in a bid to escape the barrage.

I’ve tried everything; calming drops, turning up the TV and radios, making him a nest under the kitchen table , covering the windows with blankets – even trying to cover him with a blanket and nothing helps.

He’s left so distressed by the noise that the poor thing daren’t even go outside into the garden, never mind for his daily walks, for days afterwards.

It’s not just around the beginning of November either; New Year’s Eve and summer nights are also increasingly blighted by super-loud bangers. It seems no event, from a wedding to a barbeque to a local music festival, is incomplete without an ear-shattering display at the end of the night. Or in some cases, half the night.

When presenting her Bill – Fireworks (Noise Limits) to the House of Commons, Cummins, who became a Labour MP in 2015, spoke about the “24/7” misuse of fireworks in her constituency: “Time and again, people in Bradford South tell me that their family life is disrupted as their children and pets are rudely awakened by the excessive noise of fireworks after 11 pm. In some cases, that happens every single night.”

Whilst such noise nuisance late at night and into the early hours is illegal, she acknowledged that policing such breaches and enforcing the existing law is, “to put it mildly, a challenge”.

Her bill, which will receive its second reading this Friday seeks to make provision about the maximum noise levels of fireworks which may be sold to the public in order to tackle their anti-social use.

Under current legislation, the noise of fireworks that can be bought in shops must not exceed 120 dB, as measured by an appropriate method at the determined safety distance. However, that legislation is simply out of date and ineffective, Cummins argues, because people are using fireworks much more liberally than they ever did, and at all times of year.

Her proposal would limit those noise levels to 90 dB or less, and is supported by leading animal charities, including the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA).

Fireworks wouldn’t be banned. And professional, organised displays would still permit the loudest fireworks. However, Cummins’ would like to see fireworks available to the general public no longer emitting sound levels equivalent to a pneumatic drill or chainsaw. Instead, she argues, “sound levels would be capped at those equivalent to an alarm clock or hairdryer”.

Who knows how far this Bill will get in the parliamentary system, particularly if the next General Election is called soon and it runs out of time? But, whatever happens, this move marks an important turning point in the war - for it can definitely sound like a war – against a major source of anti-social noise.

As the MP points out, “the antisocial use of fireworks is not just a Bradford problem but a nationwide problem”. In 2019, the House of Commons’ Petitions Committee noted that thousands of people across the country had raised the issue of anti-social behaviour associated with fireworks.

Many people felt that current laws were unenforceable and that complaints were not acted on. Local authority and police witnesses confirmed that current legislation is challenging to enforce.

The RSPCA is calling on Parliamentarians across the House of Commons to work together to bring this Bill to fruition to help protect the safety and wellbeing of animals and vulnerable members of society.

Surely, no responsible MP – or individual – could argue that restricting the noise from fireworks doesn’t make sense. Making fireworks less intimidating would also reduce the pressure on already stretched police forces and local enforcement agencies, so would save public money too.

If the arrogant firework abusers are happy to watch their own cash go up in smoke, that’s their prerogative. But it’s time for this selfish, anti-social behaviour that totally disregards other people – and their animals – to be snuffed out.