Ilkley residents may hear some news that is sweet to their ears in the not too distant future.

For tomorrow brings the third reading of Bill Tynan's Firework Bill, which has cleared its Committee stage and now comes back to the House of Commons.

And one of the debating points will be - just how loud should we allow fireworks to be?

The Bill proposes limiting the sale of fireworks to certain times of the year and licensing firework displays.

If it becomes legislation, it will be welcomed by people living in the Ilkley area where there have long been complaints regarding loud fireworks.

In October last year, it was announced that Ilkley Parish Council may ban late night fireworks to stop revellers disturbing residents in the early hours.

Members said they would look into the possibility of bringing in a bylaw to prevent the setting off of loud fireworks at unsociable hours following complaints from local people about hotel guests causing a nuisance.

Residents protested to parish councillors and wrote to the Ilkley Gazette after being woken up by a volley of fireworks set off in the early hours on Wells Road.

The fireworks were believed to have been ignited in the Darwin Gardens area by a wedding guest.

In November, a Burley-in-Wharfedale family had to nurse their pet dog back to health after a rogue firework made the dog bolt in terror.

A large display rocket exploded as the dog was being walked near the Ilkley suspension bridge. It was later found at Beamsley Beacon exhausted and unable to walk.

Later in November, furious Ilkley residents demanded action after a massive midnight firework display shattered the sleep of people across the town.

The noise from the rockets unleashed at The Craiglands Hotel was so loud it woke people living more than a mile away.

The hotel, which was hosting a corporate charity, received outraged protests.

According to one local householder, it sounded 'like the start of World War Three'.

Peter Wilson of the National Campaign for Firework Safety says: "The RSPCA, in their recent report, are recommending 95db(A)I. This they suggest would be the right balance between the anxiety fireworks cause to animals, both domestic and wild, and the entertainment they provide to a select few."

"The new European Standard on Fireworks, which will come into force over the next few years, is saying 120 dB(A)I should be the maximum.

"Our own Firework Industry has agreed to 'Limit supply of noisy fireworks (113-120 Decibels) to larger higher cost products/packs' so they will still be noisy fireworks out there."

Mr Wilson, Northern regional organiser, continued: "On the face of it, the two sides are not far apart, 95 as against 113, until you understand all of the equation

"A decibel is a logarithmic unit, so if you double the noise sources, the decibels will only go up by three decibels, and doubling it again only pushes it up another three decibels.

"To make it easier to understand let us say Bang equals 95 dB(A)I, then bang bang equals 98 dB(A)I, and bang, bang, bang, bang will equal 101 dB(A)I.

"If you carry on until you reach 119 dB(A)I you will have a staggering 256 bangs.

"Yes, fireworks can be 256 times louder than the RSPCA say your pet should suffer.

"On the normal types of firework it will be just less than 64 times as loud.

"Rockets, however, can be as loud as they like, as no upper level has been agreed so we are at the mercy of the firework industry."

Mr Wilson concludes: "We know just how important how our hearing is, so why should we put at risk the hearing of ourselves and that of our children just to satisfy the financial cravings of the firework industry?"

The Firework Bill, although a Private Members Bill, has received Government backing and is proceeding through Parliament.

Doubts have been raised that any new laws will be passed before this year's Guy Fawkes Night.