Outrage over councils’ “heavy-handedness” and “fun police” attitudes often dominate local and national headlines. Lincolnshire councils are no stranger to the trend, but some measures come from a place of genuine concern.
But, as opposed to the “fun police” jibes often levelled at councils, this measure comes from a good place.
The authority argues that the lanterns and balloons can pose a choking or entanglement hazard to natural wildlife and livestock.
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The policy has also proven popular with the public and the Marine Conservation Society told Local Democracy Weekly they were “delighted” to see more councils introducing the ban.
But while some bans work and are popular with the public, others do not go down so well or are just unenforceable.
Example of a sky lantern release. South Kesteven District Council wants to ban the release of lanterns and balloons on its land.
South Lanarkshire struggled to pass a ban on silly string at Lanimer Day, a celebration that takes place every June in the Scottish town of Lanark.
The local paper reported that the matter was “getting silly now” as the policy fell foul of the council’s licensing laws.
Other so-called bans are the things of myth and legend and often wrongly repeated to this day.
Perhaps the most infamous is that of Winterval, a 41-day and night celebration in Birmingham in 1997, where the local council marketing team was tasked with including a number of holidays and events in the city centre over the winter period.
The event would include a Christmas lights switch on, Frankfurt Christmas Market, Diwali, as well as other activities such as arts and theatre.
This then snowballed and the story became that other “councils” were doing the same and it was all the fault of “political correctness” and that Christmas was being banned.
Ultimately, councils have a duty to protect the local area, environment and the people who live in its district.
They have the power to clamp down on certain issues, whether they be pollution or animal welfare.
However, they are also accountable to the public and whether or not a ban is welcomed or not is down to the people
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Exciting news for MyLocal app users and The Lincolnite readers! Our latest update is now available to download from your app store and comes packed with the best local news experience you can enjoy.
Revamped News Feed: Enjoy faster loading times and smoother scrolling that make catching up on local news a breeze.
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