Clause 1 - Introduction
Fireworks Bill
2:30 pm
Mr Andrew Robathan (Blaby, Conservative)
As the Committee will know, the Opposition have no great problem with the Bill. Indeed, I applaud the work of the hon. Member for Hamilton, South (Mr. Tynan) in promoting it. I hope that it will assist in making the lives of our constituents less noisy, and that it may help to reduce the upset and anguish that some people suffer as a result of firework noise.
As the Minister knows, the Bill has little content; it merely allows the Government to make regulations. However, we have a philosophical objection to giving the Government too much power to make regulation—powers that may be abused in years to come. Therefore, the amendments propose that the Government make changes by statutory instrument, which should be placed before Parliament. That is not unreasonable. Nor is it a wrecking move. We simply want the Government to agree, so that if a future Government were ill-disposed to a sector of the fireworks industry, or for some other reason wished to introduce draconian measures, they would not be able to do so without coming before Parliament.