More than three-quarters of people have backed the creation of new offences to tackle the misuse of fireworks and pyrotechnics, a consultation has found.
A large majority of respondents (84%) also agreed that a fireworks licensing system should be introduced in Scotland.
The public consultation, which drew 1,739 responses, asked for views on the Scottish Government’s Fireworks and Pyrotechnics Bill.
More than nine in 10 (92%) of those questioned agreed that a “proxy purchasing” offence should be brought in to criminalise the supply of fireworks to young people under the age of 18.
And 77% backed the creation of a new offence of being in possession of a pyrotechnic in a public place without reasonable excuse or lawful authority.
Many raised concerns about the risks of fireworks and pyrotechnics and their potential to cause serious injury.
Community Safety Minister Ash Regan said: “The consultation builds on a significant programme of engagement and evidence gathering and demonstrated the range of views among those who responded.
“I am committed to making our communities safer and we have already moved quickly to introduce regulations restricting the times of day and the volume of fireworks that can be supplied to the public – as well as the times fireworks can be set off.
“We are intent on further improving safety for communities across Scotland by taking forward the Fireworks and Pyrotechnics Bill at the earliest opportunity to ensure appropriate action is taken over the sale and use of fireworks and to reduce the misuse of pyrotechnic devices such as flares.”
The majority of responses to the consultation were from individual members of the public while 64 were from groups or organisations.
The majority (85%) agreed that any licensing system should cover possession and use of fireworks in addition to purchase.
Seven in 10 (70%) agreed with extending police powers to allow a stop and search provision in relation to pyrotechnics.
More than two-thirds backed further restrictions on the days fireworks can be used by the public.
The proposed Bill is in addition to new regulations which came into force at the end of June restricting the times of day and the volume of fireworks that can be supplied to the public – as well as the times fireworks can be set off.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel