From Birmingham to Gateshead,public Bonfire night events are increasingly being called off, scaled down or taken over by private sponsorsIn an austerity-dominated era of library closures, or shuttered swimming pools and sold-off housing it might seem a relatively minor loss,but it is nonetheless a symbolic one for many: the gradual disappearance of the municipal fireworks display.
From Birmingham to south London to Gateshead, longstanding public Bonfire night events are being axed, or scaled down or taken over by private sponsors in return for an entry fee. Each time the explanation is the same: the enormous cuts to councils’ central government funding since 2010.
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Source: theguardian.com