BBC NEWS | Programmes | Breakfast | Should we ban fireworks?

You might have thought we'd left the bad old days of bonfire night injuries behind us.

But last Autumn, more than 1,300 people were injured by fireworks around Guy Fawkes night - an increase of 40 per cent on the year before.

If we can't learn to handle fireworks safely, is it time to ban their sale completely?

We asked for your views - and had lots of e-mails

click here to read your comments on fireworks

Jules Botfield reported live from Manchester, where they've been campaigning for a ban on over the counter firework sales.

Paul Horrocks, editor of the Manchester Evening News

Paul Horrocks who edits the Manchester Evening News, has been campaigning for a ban on over the counter firework sales to the general public.

"Year after year, hundreds of people are injured by fireworks," said: "We've just reported on the case of a pregnant woman who had a firework thrown through her letterbox.

"She lost her baby."
Clive Knott, Quicksilver firework shop

Retailer Clive Knott sells fireworks for large, organised displays.

He told us: "We only sell to over-18s. It's the responsibility of adults to make sure that fireworks don't fall into the hands of children."

click here to watch our firework debate in full

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Safety tips

And read our top tips for firework safety - courtesy of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA)

If you're going to light fireworks at home, plan your display properly

Never give sparklers to children under five

Never hold a baby in your arms when you are holding a sparkler.

When the sparkler has finished, put it into a bucket of cold water straight away and leave it there.

Keep your pets indoors with the curtains closed.

Keep fireworks in a closed box and use them one at a time.

Take a torch with you so you can read the instructions on each firework.

Keep naked flames, including cigarettes, away from fireworks except when ready to set them off.

Light the firework at arm's length with a taper and stand well back.

Never return to a firework once it has been lit.

Don't put fireworks in pockets and never throw them.

Direct any rocket fireworks well away from spectators.

Never use paraffin or petrol on a bonfire.

Make sure that the fire is out and surroundings are made safe before leaving.

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