Rejected petition Legislate such that only noiseless fireworks are available for sale at any time.

Animals, both domestic and wild, suffer greatly during the winter period due to the noise generated by certain fireworks. A firework display is for the visual effect and it is possible to purchase "noiseless" fireworks and still provide the same level of excitement. Legislating such that only "noiseless" fireworks are available for sale, would mean that fireworks can still be enjoyed for their visual attraction but our domestic pets and wildlife do not have to suffer.

Why was this petition rejected?

It’s about something that the Senedd or Welsh Government is not responsible for.

The Government of Wales Act 2006 establishes the extent of the Senedd’s power to make new laws and amend existing law (also known as legislative competence). Schedules 7A and 7B of the 2006 Act set out the issues which are ‘restricted’ or ‘reserved’ - i.e. areas where the UK Parliament, not the Senedd, can legislate.
Several reservations limit the Senedd’s legislative competence in this area, including in relation to the ‘sale and supply of goods to consumers’ and ‘product standards, safety and liability’.
Specifically, “technical standards and requirements in relation to products in pursuance of an obligation under EU law” are reserved to the UK Parliament. Technical standards for pyrotechnics (including fireworks) are covered by EU Directive 2013/29/EU, which was transposed into UK law by the Pyrotechnic Articles (Safety) Regulations 2015. These regulations set out the technical standards that pyrotechnic articles must meet in order to comply with EU law, including in relation to noise levels.
Countries that are subject to EU law are not able to “prohibit, restrict or hinder the making available on the market of pyrotechnic articles which satisfy the requirements of the Directive”. Therefore it is not possible for the Senedd to take the action called for by your petition.
This position may change after the UK-EU implementation period has ended (it is currently scheduled to end on 31 December 2020). However, it is not currently clear whether the Senedd would then be able to take more action on this issue.
A petition calling for an end to the sale of fireworks to the public is currently collecting signatures: https://petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/244400

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Date submitted 18 November 2020
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