| All in all it's just another brick in the wall. |
Guy Fawkes might be amused. But not the citizens of his home city. Their annual celebration of the failure of his gunpowder plot has been cancelled by the health and safety police.
For years, huge crowds gathered for official fireworks displays at sites including York Racecourse and the 13th-century Clifford's Tower. Last year, however, the city council decided to cancel the event, blaming soaring safety costs. Although his figure lights up bonfires across the country every November, there will be no Guy Fawkes's night celebrations in the conspirator's home city.
This year, hopes of a large November 5 celebration have again been dashed after an event planned for York City football-ground was refused a safety licence.
Gillian Cruddas, the chief executive of York Tourism Bureau, said the lack of an official event in the city of Guy Fawkes's birth was a common source of bemusement to visitors. "It's such a shame because there's continued interest in York at this time of year, partly because of the Guy Fawkes connection," she added.
Although York celebrated the night last year health and safety costs soared.
A spokesman for York City Council said: "Unfortunately the cost of holding a large-scale display is extremely high. The cost of the fireworks is always the smaller element for large, traditional style displays, with a considerable amount of money needed to address the health and safety measures." |