Scotland must act to deal with Bonfire Night thugs putting lives at risk
MSP Ash Regan warns parts of Scotland will be turned into a ‘war zone’
Those of us of a certain age will have many fond memories of the Bonfire Nights of old, with Catherine wheels, sparklers and treacle toffee. It was harmless fun and far removed from the horrific origins of this annual tradition, the 1605 Gunpowder Plot and the grisly fate of Guy Fawkes.
However across Scotland, people will be preparing for their streets to be turned into what MSP Ash Regan described as a “war zone” by mindless, violent thugs who regard November 5 as an excuse to attack police officers, firefighters and anyone unlucky enough to be passing by with fireworks containing high-powered explosives as well as other missiles, including bricks and even petrol bombs.
Under legislation passed in 2022, firework control zones have been set up in which it is illegal to set them off. However, the law’s requirement for people to hold a licence in order to buy fireworks has been paused by the Scottish Government, with John Swinney explaining this was because of “the cost of introducing” the system.
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Robust policing and long prison sentences
How depressing it is that people can no longer be trusted to act responsibility and have a care for the safety of other people. If the organised violence of recent years continues, someone is going to be killed.
Police Scotland recently arrested a man and seized fireworks worth about £42,000, with Assistant Chief Constable Tim Mairs saying officers had “effectively taken more than a tonne of potentially dangerous weapons out of the hands of those who wish to cause fear and alarm within our communities and carry out attacks on emergency services, buses and members of the public”.
READ MORE: Watch: Helicopter footage shows youths throwing fireworks at police with shields on Bonfire Night
It’s clear that much more needs to be done, in addition to robust policing and long prison sentences for the worst offenders. Restricting the sale of powerful fireworks to the relatively small number of people who put on professional displays might be a cheaper way of addressing the problem than a broader licensing system.
However, just as we cannot let an irresponsible minority wreak havoc on our streets, we should surely also not allow them to spoil everyone’s fun by bringing in an outright ban.