Chamber and committees

I will bring in Jamie Greene with a follow-up question in a moment, but I want to briefly jump back to a question on licensing. Members have been looking for a bit more detail on the licensing proposals and one issue has come up repeatedly. Might this be an opportunity for us to ask a wee bit about the practicalities of the licensing scheme that is being put in place? For example, will there be an online option? Will people be required to produce identity documents? What sort of timescale will there be from the point at which somebody applies to the point that their application is completed and endorsed? I would like to hear a bit more practical detail about the process for people who apply for licences.

When we took evidence from previous witnesses, we asked about alternative options for the proposal in the bill on proxy purchases for under-18s. That is one of the key measures that the Government is keen to enact earlier than the other provisions. However, the section on alternative legislative solutions in the policy memorandum does not seem to mention how the proxy purchase scheme could have been achieved through a route other than the bill. Could a different legislative route be explored for that provision?

Thank you. I will bring in Norman Donald, who joins us remotely. I hope you can hear us okay, Norman.

I will bring in Norman Donald. I do not know whether you are still with us; I hope that you are. Could you respond to the questions from Jamie Greene and Fulton MacGregor about the impact of restricted dates on your business?

I call Rona Mackay, to be followed by Russell Findlay.

Yes.

Jamie, do you want to comment on licensing?

In that case, we will move on to questions about restrictions on the use and supply of fireworks.

We will move on to questions on the licensing scheme proposals. I ask for the most succinct answers you can offer. We have quite a lot of interest in the subject, and questions to get through.

Good morning and welcome to the 12th meeting in 2022 of the Criminal Justice Committee. We have no apologies this morning.

Our main item of business is an evidence session on the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Bill. I refer members to papers 1 and 2. I am pleased to welcome Fraser Stevenson, vice-chairman of the British Fireworks Association; Andy Hubble, chairman of the British Pyrotechnists Association; and Norman Donald, the owner of NJE Fireworks Displays, who joins us remotely on BlueJeans. Good morning to you all. We appreciate the time that you are taking to join us.

We move directly to questions. I will open with a general question, which I will put first to Fraser Stevenson and then to Andy Hubble. Could you give us some broad comments, from the perspective of your respective organisations, on your experience to date of dealing with and supplying fireworks and pyrotechnic articles?