The Fireworks Act 2003 was an Act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

, granted royal assent on 18 September 2003. It was the first such act since those of

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

and

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

and is notable as the enabling legislation for the Fireworks Regulations 2004. It wholly or partly repealed six acts from between 1974 and 2001 and amended a sentence of the

Explosives Act 1875 The Explosives Act 1875 ( 38 & 39 Vict. c. 17) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that consolidated and amended statutes relating to explosives. Background On 2 October 1874, two barges carrying gunpowder ignited and exploded ...

, with the latter's provision (section 80) against throwing or discharging a firework in a street or public place remaining in force until the present day.

Fireworks Regulations 2004

The Fireworks Regulations 2004 impose restrictions on the importation, supply and possession of fireworks in England, Wales and Scotland. The regulations were made under the act. In particular, the Regulations introduced the following measures: * a ban on the use of fireworks late at night (after 11 pm) - except for

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

, the night of

Diwali Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual v ...

and the first day of

Chinese New Year Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also #Names, § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Chinese calendar. It is one of the most important holi ...

- where fireworks may be used until 1 am (on

Guy Fawkes Night Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night and Fireworks Night, is an annual commemoration list of minor secular observances#November, observed on 5 November, primarily in Great Britain, involving bonfires and firewor ...

fireworks may be used until 12 midnight); * a ban on the possession of Category 4 fireworks by non-professionals; * a ban on persons under the age of 18 possessing fireworks in public places; * a ban on the sale of fireworks outside certain "traditional" or minority-cultural periods (such as those listed in the first bullet), unless suppliers are licensed; and, * a requirement that importers of fireworks notify

HM Revenue and Customs His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (commonly HM Revenue and Customs, or HMRC, and formerly Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs) is a department of the UK government responsible for the collection of taxes, the payment of some forms of stat ...

of the storage destination of their imports - the intention being to prevent illegal distribution and dangerous storage. Some of these regulations are not applicable to

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, and none of them applies in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, which has its own, stricter regulations in place. The regulations revoked the Fireworks Regulations 2003 which introduced, as emergency measures, prohibitions on the possession of fireworks by those under the age of 18 and the possession of category 4 fireworks by non-professionals. UK emergency regulations are usually temporary in nature - lasting no more than one year after the date of coming into force. The

Department for Business and Trade The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It was established on 7 February 2023 by a February 2023 British cabinet resh ...

(DBT) is responsible for fireworks policy.

Criticism

The Act and regulations have been criticised by multiple MPs, MSPs, and MSs for not being strict enough.{{Cite news , date=2024-10-23 , title=Calls for firework-free zones ahead of Bonfire night , url=https://nation.cymru/news/calls-for-firework-free-zones-ahead-of-bonfire-night/ , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241023093022/https://nation.cymru/news/calls-for-firework-free-zones-ahead-of-bonfire-night/ , archive-date=2024-10-23 , access-date=2025-04-18 , work=Nation.Cymru

References

United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 2003 Fire prevention Health and safety in the United Kingdom