Should fireworks lose their bang?

Katherine Alderson, a spokesperson for the Firework Campaign, became involved in the debate after her dog Ted was left terrified by fireworks.

She says the season now stretches from October to January, and has fitted homemade insulation to her bedroom window to try to block out the noise.

“We’ll literally camp down in my bedroom until the firework season is over,” she said.

“We’re not saying that you can’t necessarily have your fireworks. We just feel that there should be some degree of sense and sensibility here.”

The Firework Campaign wants to “reduce avoidable harm, restrict the loudest fireworks and use alternatives such as public displays or quieter fireworks”.

Alderson said she would personally like to see fireworks banned from sale but wanted to be “realistic”.

She said she knew of others who had bought static caravans or sat in motorway service stations to keep their dogs away from the noise.

Consumer fireworks can currently be as loud as 120 decibels.

“If fireworks were invented today, chances are they wouldn’t be available to the general public in the shops, because let’s face it, we are dealing with explosives,” she said.

She said fireworks had changed since she was a child.

“We probably had the neighbours round and it was an enjoyable experience,” she said. “But it was short, sensible and considerably quieter than what they are today.”

She said people are still able to enjoy the nostalgia and community without using fireworks that are “the equivalent of a war zone”.

Government polling found 91% of respondents supported regulatory change.

Among those who disliked fireworks noise, 91% cited its effect on animals, 71% its effect on the peace and quiet of their community, and 68% its effect on vulnerable people.

Two parliamentary petitions – one calling for a 90 decibel limit and another for sales to be restricted to council-approved events – each gathered more than 180,000 signatures and were debated by MPs in January.