Put safety of people and animals first and ban private fireworks sales, Scottish Green Party says

The Green Party has urged ministers to prioritise the “safety of communities and animals” by banning the sale of fireworks to private individuals.

The party said 2024 had been a year “marred by firework chaos” and called for an end to “dangerous, unorganised displays in residential areas”.

They said the “small” firework control zones introduced in Edinburgh ahead of the Bonfire Night period had failed to prevent “continued firework misuse”, with 32 people being charged in connection with fireworks-related offences.

They also pointed to the death at Edinburgh Zoo of Roxie, a four-month-old red panda, from stress caused by fireworks in nearby residential areas in November, just weeks after her mother passed away.

Green MSP Maggie Chapman said the time had come to put the safety of people and animals ahead of “profits for supermarkets and online retailers”.

“The festive season is a time of celebration for many, but each year we see the continued misuse of fireworks, which causes stress and anxiety for many people and animals,” she said.

“Organised and well-managed events and displays can be important and celebratory events that bring people together.

“But what we need to end are the dangerous, unorganised displays in residential areas.

“These are not only dangerous – fireworks are explosive devices after all – but also stressful with the bangs and screams causing distress to many.

“The sale of fireworks in supermarkets and online causes mass chaos for emergency services between October and Hogmanay each year, putting immense stress on frontline workers at an already extremely busy time.

Scottish Green Party MSP Maggie Chapman has called for an end to ‘dangerous, unorganised displays in residential areas’ (Jane Barlow/PA) PA Media

“We do not allow the unlimited sale of explosive devices in any other situation.

“It’s time we put the safety of communities and animals ahead of profits for supermarkets and online retailers.

“The New Year must bring an end to these sales for good and make our communities safer for everyone.”

Scottish Government community safety minister Siobhian Brown said: “We have brought in a number of measures to improve firework safety, including a ban on providing fireworks to under-18s and making attacks on emergency workers using fireworks an aggravating factor that courts can take into account when sentencing offenders.

“We have also provided local authorities with powers to designate firework control zones, which ban the use of fireworks in local areas, and these were used for the first time this year.

“I understand why there are calls for a fireworks ban, and although this is a reserved matter and not currently within the Scottish Government’s powers, I have written to the UK Government asking for a meeting to discuss what more can be done on fireworks regulations.”

A spokesperson for the UK Government’s Department of Business and Trade said: “We understand the concern over the impact of fireworks noise on people and animals and the disturbance this can cause.

“That’s why there is already a maximum legal noise level set for fireworks and why we launched a fireworks safety campaign earlier this year to help people use them considerately.”