Fireworks regulator to present new measures by end of month

Fireworks safety proposals made in 2011 could finally be incorporated in a set of legal amendments by the end of the month but enthusiasts insist they have not been consulted. The Explosives Committee, which regulates the industry, has told The Sunday Times that by the end of November it plans to present the Government with detailed proposals on the basis of recommendations by a commission chaired by chemistry professor Alfred Vella, which last year carried out a comprehensive review of the fireworks industry. The commission’s proposals, which included urgent recommendations such as the banning of dangerous chemical mixtures prohibited abroad, were presented in November 2011. But a year later, the proposals remain on paper. Following last Sunday’s fireworks factory explosion in Għarb, which killed four people, the Government reacted to calls for the urgent introduction of the recommendations, saying it would stick to the plan and wait for the Explosives Committee to recommend how the measures should be implemented. The Office of the Prime Minister, which is now responsible for the area following the forced resignation of Carm Mifsud Bonnici as Home Affairs Minister last May, also...