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Prosecutions: Fireworks

Answer

Data on the number of penalty notices for disorder (PNDs) issued in the Merseyside police force area and England for offences related to the misuse of fireworks and defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for throwing fireworks, in each year between 2006 and 2010 (latest currently available), can be viewed in the table. These data are not available at constituency level.Court proceedings data for 2011 are planned for publication in the spring of 2012.

Defendants given penalty notices for disorder (PNDs) for offences related to fireworks and defendants¹ proceeded against at magistrates courts for throwing fireworks², in the Merseyside police force area and England, in each year between 2006-10
Area/offence	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Merseyside
PNDs issued:
Breach of fireworks curfew³	1	1	—	—	—
Possession of category 4 firework³	3	2	2	1	—
Possession by a person under 18 of adult firework³	10	5	6	7	7
Throwing fireworks	27	20	19	28	26
Proceedings at magistrates courts:
Throwing fireworks	1	—	2	1	1
England
PNDs issued:
Breach of fireworks curfew³	51	37	19	13	23
Possession of category 4 firework³	25	22	23	56	22
Possession by a person under 18 of adult firework³	73	101	63	58	60
Throwing fireworks	639	607	500	317	330
Proceedings at magistrates courts:
Throwing fireworks	32	28	28	18	25
¹ The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
² Explosives Act 1875, section 80: Throwing, casting or firing any fireworks in or into any highway, street, public place etc.
³ Fireworks Regulations 2004 under section 11 of the Fireworks Act 2003.
Note:
Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.
Source:
Justice Statistics Analytical Services within the Ministry of Justice.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

84659; 537 c506W

Session

2010-12

Subjects

Fireworks Prosecutions

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk