Fireworks Crackdown: Antonia Bance Demands Action as 140,000 Respond to Government Consultation

Government faces mounting pressure to tackle year-round noise, antisocial use and the devastating impact on pets, livestock and vulnerable residents.

More than 140,000 people have responded to a major government consultation on fireworks, adding huge public weight to calls for tighter controls on some of the loudest products available to consumers. The government is now examining the responses after the consultation closed on 7 October, with proposals including reducing the maximum noise level for consumer fireworks from 120dB to 110dB and restricting louder products to professional users

For communities tired of fireworks exploding late into the night, the debate has become about far more than Bonfire Night. Tipton and Wednesbury MP Antonia Bance has been pressing the issue, warning of the impact repeated and excessively loud fireworks can have on residents, veterans, vulnerable people, pets and livestock. In the parliamentary exchange shared online, concerns were raised about fireworks being set off “all night, all year round”, with the minister acknowledging the scale of the public response and the stories submitted by people calling for change.

Antonia Bance MP is pushing ministers to go further on fireworks, calling for tougher restrictions and a ban on some types following growing concerns over antisocial use...watch here

Bance has also told constituents that many people have contacted her with concerns about the antisocial use of fireworks. In the Facebook post supplied by MP Bance, she said she had raised the issue directly with the minister and highlighted government proposals to restrict the loudest fireworks to professional events and potentially ban certain types from public sale. Her message was blunt: “I am clear that we have to do this”, pledging to continue pushing the minister.

The strength of feeling is difficult to ignore. More than 140,000 consultation responses are now being reviewed by the Department for Business and Trade, while the RSPCA generated more than 51,000 responses through its own campaign encouraging supporters to take part. Animal welfare organisations and campaigners have argued that unpredictable and excessively loud fireworks can cause serious distress to pets and livestock. 

But despite the growing pressure, this is not currently a proposal for a complete ban on people buying fireworks. Ministers have ruled out an outright public-sales ban as disproportionate. The measures under consideration instead focus on tougher restrictions, including bringing the consumer noise ceiling down to 110dB and keeping louder fireworks for professional displays. Any resulting legislative changes would require parliamentary approval. 

For residents across Tipton, Wednesbury and the wider Black Country who say they have had enough of fireworks becoming a year-round disturbance, the question now is whether an extraordinary public response will finally translate into tougher rules. Bance has made clear that she intends to keep the pressure on. With more than 140,000 voices now part of the consultation, ministers have been left in little doubt about the strength of feeling surrounding Britain’s fireworks laws.

🔥 Trending News 🔥

• “People Are Sick of Excuses”: Water Bosses Face Growing Anger
• UK Households Urged to Prepare for Three Days Without Power, Water and Internet
• 341 Years Later: France Finally Erases Law That Treated Black Slaves as Property
• Windrush Conference Hears Promises of Change
• Poundland Closures Hit Close to Home