Oireachtas committee: An EU move to make fireworks freely available could lead to more accidents, but the State was pushing for health and safety controls, an Oireachtas committee on justice was told yesterday.
Government officials discussed a major review of fireworks policy in the State but said an EU directive could force more liberalised moves.
Tom Lynch, principal officer of the crime division at the Department of Justice, said: "We are much more stringent in our approach to fireworks than other EU states." However, there was concern about a standardising move in the EU to introduce free trade regarding fireworks. It could have the effect of requiring the State to open up its laws.
"We are getting the support of other member states in that we are pushing for strengthening the health and safety aspects of the directive," Mr Lynch said.
The directive calls for a free market where fireworks would be readily available.
"The more you make fireworks available, the greater likelihood of accidents," he said.
EU member states had their own policies. Many allowed certain categories of fireworks to be sold to the public.
"Our approach is entirely different," he said. "Some of these fireworks have the power of the grenade, so do we want that freely available?" The Government would encourage controls on the more dangerous ones.
He replied to Oireachtas members' concerns that the elderly and disabled were put in fear by anti-social behaviour with fireworks, especially in the weeks around Halloween.
He said there was a need for a change in the law - the current Act was introduced in 1875. The law was lax, as no licence was required for public fireworks events. Some of the penalties in the Act were meaningless.
Joe Coates, the Government inspector for explosives, said an EU survey showed that the lowest reported accident rates caused by fireworks were Ireland and Greece, and both had a ban on selling them in public.