History
The use of fireworks was first restricted in New Zealand in the 19th century, with the maximum fine in 1850 for illegally using fireworks in a public place being £5, equivalent to several hundred dollars in 2019 terms. [4]
In the 1960s several groups, including fire authorities, the SPCA and women's groups began advocating for the public sale of fireworks to be restricted, citing property damage and injuries to children and animals. In 1969 a bill that proposed restricting the sale to two weeks before Guy Fawkes Night was rejected by Parliament. [7] Around this time Beverly Pentland, a solo mother from Petone, started advocating for the restriction of fireworks and began visiting hundreds of schools to educate children about the dangers of fireworks. She became known as the "Fireworks Lady" to children and used pamphlets in the style of comics to engage youth. [7] [8] With encouragement from Pentland, The Explosives Amendment Bill was passed in 1973, which, when it came into effect in 1974, banned the sale of fireworks until 10 days before Guy Fawkes. She continued her education programme and advocated for the sale of fireworks to be restricted to those at or above the age of 16. In 1985 the Explosives (Fireworks Safety) Amendment Bill was passed which led to this age restriction coming into effect, but Pentland had died the year prior. [7] She was appointed a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1975 New Year Honours list. [9]
In both 1994 and 1996 Parliament debated whether the public sale of fireworks should be banned. They decided that the irresponsible use of fireworks by a minority of the population should not remove the right for most residents to responsibly use fireworks. In 1994 skyrockets and firecrackers were banned. [10]
Starting in 2001, [10] fireworks could be sold for 10 days a year and to people aged 14 and over. In 2006, [6] the amount of days that fireworks could be sold per year was reduced to four: from 2 November to 5 November (before and during Guy Fawkes Night). Also in 2006 the minimum age that purchasers of fireworks could be was increased to 18. [5]
Since 2014, the use of fireworks in Auckland's forests, conversation areas and roads has been prohibited. [1] [11] Since 2020, the Auckland Council has closed access to the ancestral mountains (Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau) on Guy Fawkes Night due to previous vegetation fires. [12] In 2019, Countdown (now named Woolworths) stopped selling fireworks, and so did The Warehouse in 2021. Both of these are amongst New Zealand's largest retailers. [6]
In a 2023 poll conducted by AA Insurance, 53% of respondents said that they wanted fireworks banned for private recreational use and 20% of respondents said that they wanted an outright ban on fireworks in New Zealand. [2] In June 2025 a petition with 90,000 signatures in support of a ban on the public sale of fireworks was presented to Parliament. The petition also included 80,000 animal paw prints. [13]
In November 2025 the political party New Zealand First proposed the Fireworks Prohibition Legislation Bill which would ban the sale, importation and manufacture of fireworks to consumers. It would still allow the use of fireworks for public events. Winston Peters, the leader of the party, cited injuries to animals and the irresponsible use of fireworks by consumers as the reason for the proposal. [14]
