Some real fireworks
From time to time I have been lobbied as a councillor by people who believe that stricter controls on Fireworks are needed - e.g. more local by laws banning people from setting them off or restricting their use.
I do think it is a good thing that safety controls on Fireworks are much more rigorous than they used to be. The health and safety mafia do not get everything right, but fireworks were originally designed as weapons and it does make sense to be very careful when using explosives for entertainment.
However, I have been and remain reluctant to go down the road of draconian restrictions on when people can let off fireworks. If people on both sides are willing to exercise a certain amount of consideration and common sense it ought to be possible for those who want to put on a firework display to enjoy their fun while allowing everyone else a reasonable opportunity to enjoy peace and quiet.
Unfortunately that kind of consideration was singularly lacking in the early hours of this morning. Having been down south for a few days, I arrived home after a long drive at 2.45 am today. As I stepped out of my car a loud explosion rang out from a couple of hundred feet above my head.
I turned round and was astonished to find a firework party in full flow, apparently in the rear garden of a house in Foxhouses Road, which continued until about 3.00 am. It included several more of the type of fireworks which climb a couple of hundred feet before exploding with a loud bang which can be heard half a mile away. I suspect the party may have awakened almost every light sleeper in the Corkickle area of Whitehaven and probably a good chunk of the rest of the Town.
As I say, I would regret the introduction of draconian controls on fireworks. The vast majority of those who use them are much more responsible. But if the minority who don't think of others carry on waking up dozens of their neighbours at three o'clock in the morning, the political pressure for such controls will become irresistible.
I do think it is a good thing that safety controls on Fireworks are much more rigorous than they used to be. The health and safety mafia do not get everything right, but fireworks were originally designed as weapons and it does make sense to be very careful when using explosives for entertainment.
However, I have been and remain reluctant to go down the road of draconian restrictions on when people can let off fireworks. If people on both sides are willing to exercise a certain amount of consideration and common sense it ought to be possible for those who want to put on a firework display to enjoy their fun while allowing everyone else a reasonable opportunity to enjoy peace and quiet.
Unfortunately that kind of consideration was singularly lacking in the early hours of this morning. Having been down south for a few days, I arrived home after a long drive at 2.45 am today. As I stepped out of my car a loud explosion rang out from a couple of hundred feet above my head.
I turned round and was astonished to find a firework party in full flow, apparently in the rear garden of a house in Foxhouses Road, which continued until about 3.00 am. It included several more of the type of fireworks which climb a couple of hundred feet before exploding with a loud bang which can be heard half a mile away. I suspect the party may have awakened almost every light sleeper in the Corkickle area of Whitehaven and probably a good chunk of the rest of the Town.
As I say, I would regret the introduction of draconian controls on fireworks. The vast majority of those who use them are much more responsible. But if the minority who don't think of others carry on waking up dozens of their neighbours at three o'clock in the morning, the political pressure for such controls will become irresistible.
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