Auckland councillors push for government to ban the sale and private use of fireworks

Wednesday, 21 February 2018

Auckland Council wants fireworks to be used for official public displays only.

The sale and private use of fireworks will become illegal in New Zealand if a proposal from two Auckland councillors is successful.

On Thursday, councillors Cathy Casey and Fa'anana Efeso Collins will present a notice of motion to Auckland Council to lobby the new Labour-led government to ban the private sale and use of fireworks nationally.

Currently, Auckland Council can regulate only fireworks being set off on public property.

If successful, the council would look at prioritising public displays.

* Duck dies after beak destroyed by fireworks

* 'A diabolical night': animal rights groups call for fireworks ban ahead of Guy Fawkes**

Auckland councillor Cathy Casey is confident the proposal will be adopted at central government level.

The sale of fireworks is regulated by the Hazardous Substances Regulation Act, which allows them to be sold between November 2 and November 5 only, and restricts sales to people over the age of 18.

In 2015 the National-led government received a petition signed by about 32,000 people calling for a ban, stating fireworks caused 'unnecessary distress and injury' to people, animals and livestock.

The petition said firework seasons, such as Guy Fawkes and New Year's Eve, put huge pressure on emergency services through unnecessary fires, property damage and injuries.

However, the proposal, which was supported by the SPCA, SAFE and the NZ Veterinarians Association, was rejected.

The public sale of fireworks was made illegal in almost all Australian states in the 1980s, barring the Northern Territories and Tasmania where strict restrictions were put in place.

There were 516 fireworks-related injury claims in New Zealand in 2016.

Casey, who was spearheading the proposal, said approaching the Government was the logical next step towards reducing fireworks' harm to people and animals.

'We would really like fireworks to be a community event as opposed to a private one because it's too dangerous, it causes too much upset and too many injuries,' Casey said.

'There would be no better thing that could happen than if the Government decided to take fireworks out of the public's hands.'

Casey said she was 'very confident' local and central government would support the ban.

Auckland councillor Fa'anana Efeso Collins said the private sale of fireworks did nothing towards keeping communities and the public safe.

'If we can make sure fireworks are in safe hands than we can enjoy it as a community,' Collins said.

SPCA communications manager Jessie Gilchrist said the SPCA had long called for a ban on the sale of fireworks to the public.

'The loud noises and bright flashes of light can be very frightening to animals and many animals become highly stressed by them,' she said.

'Every year the SPCA gets reports of animals running away and going missing, injuring themselves or becoming susceptible to traffic accidents – and in some cases, there are fatalities.'

In 2017, a duck died in the parking lot of south Auckland's Middlemore Hospital after fireworks were shoved into its beak.

Vet nurse Heather Hewitt said one dog had been so frightened by fireworks he broke through a window and bled to death.