It’s that time of year again when dog owners grimly accept that they will have to spend their evenings trying in vain to comfort trembling, distressed pets as the local louts inflict impromptu firework ‘displays’ on us late into the night.

In Harnham, it’s already going on and will do for another fortnight if nothing is done to stop it.

I have written to the heads of Salisbury policing, asking if patrols could stop by the principal playgrounds of these pests in my ward - the chalk pit and the cricket field - to act as a deterrent. We’ll see if anything materialises.

I understand the pleasure people get from fireworks displays, and I don’t have any problem with organised, properly supervised events that are advertised in advance, to give pet owners a warning.

But it is way past time our government changed the law to keep fireworks out of the hands of these idiots who don’t care about the suffering they cause.

Councillor Annie Riddle

Independent,

Harnham West