Licences for foreign fireworks enthusiasts

The government has issued a legal notice to grant temporary licences for foreign licensed fireworks enthusiasts to let off pyrotechnics.

This legal provision closes a legal loophole and paves the way for licences to be issued for fireworks experts who visit Malta to take part in international pyrotechnics festivals.

Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici said the temporary licence will remain valid until the end of the event for which it would have been issued.

A separate new regulation was published to further clarify the obligations of fireworks factory licence holders. This regulation enables the suspension of licences when a factory breaches the Explosives Ordnance.

The minister was speaking during the launch of an EU-funded project which will see 17 fireworks enthusiasts receiving training to become instructors and eventually train other people.

The project was masterminded by Kirkop mayor Mario Salerno who teamed up with the Xagħra, Safi, Żurrieq, Żebbuġ and Qormi councils – which all have fireworks factories in their localities – to provide this first-of-its-kind course.

The course will be provided over a year and participants are then expected to train 160 other people who are new to the fireworks scene.

The pilot project, which is expected to cost €273,000, funded through the European Social Fund, is being organised in collaboration with the Malta Pyrotechnics Association.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici said the legal notices and the project were all part of a series of initiatives the government was taking to continue making the hobby a safer one.