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Visitors to London’s New Year’s Eve fireworks celebrations are to be charged for the first time, Mayor Boris Johnson announced today.

The decision to issue tickets for the traditionally free event has sparked criticism, with City Hall opposition leaders calling it “a scandal”.

But the mayor insisted the huge numbers attending had made the event “untenable” and ticketing was essential to slash crowd numbers.

Revellers will be charged £10 to attend, with only 100,000 tickets being made available to the public after around half a million attended last year.

Caroline Pidgeon, leader of the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Group, slammed the decision, saying the mayor should “delight” in the event’s growing popularity as it showcases the capital to the world.

She said: “The event must be accessible to everyone and that must mean it remains free.

“It would be a scandal if any families were denied access to the event due to the introduction of ticket prices.

“There is also the potential for serious crowd management issues outside of the ‘pay zone’ if this plan goes ahead.”

Len Duvall, London Assembly’s Labour Group leader, warned against making New Year’s Eve “prohibitively expensive for average Londoners” and said hundreds of thousands could either miss out on the event or still turn up anyway hoping to see it.

He said: “While public safety must be top priority, the Mayor needs to make the case that ticketing is the best way of achieving this. Without that transparency people may see this as little more than a money making exercise, especially if costs are allowed to creep up each year.

“London’s fireworks are one of the most iconic New Year’s Eve celebrations in the world, but it is important that enjoying the celebrations does not become prohibitively expensive for average Londoners and the thousands of tourists who come to watch them. £10 a ticket might not seem extortionate, but for a family the cost can quickly rack up.

“Around 500,000 attended the fireworks last year, yet only 100,000 tickets will be on sale this year. Either hundreds of thousands of people will miss out or many will still turn up in the hope of seeing the display without paying. How will these extra people be accommodated, and how will the authorities prevent a two-tier system of spectators developing – those paying and those not?”

The event was first staged at the London Eye in 2003. But numbers attending have swelled, with organisers saying the event is becoming unmanageable because of the strain on transport and safety infrastructure.

Such is the popularity, that capacity is often being reached by early evening, leaving hundreds of thousands unable to get a good view or even see the display at all, they said.

Those who do arrive early enough face hours waiting in often cold and cramped conditions, while huge crowd numbers also mean longer delays afterwards as revellers struggle to make their way home on public transport.

Mr Johnson said the move was necessary to ensure the safety of the event for the long term.

A detailed “scoping” exercise was carried out to assess a range of ideas to help manage and ultimately reduce numbers, he said, and it was decided ticketing was the best option available to organisers going forward.

The decision was fully backed by the emergency services, Transport For London and local authorities.

He said: “London’s New Year’s Eve fireworks are phenomenally popular, not just in the capital, but across the world and we want to ensure it continues to be a safe, enjoyable and sustainable event for the long-term.

“After consulting with our partners, we are introducing ticketing to help manage crowd numbers and create a better experience on the night.”

Ed Lister, deputy mayor responsible for policy and planning, insisted the tickets were not a profit-making exercise and that every penny of the £10 fee will be used to pay for the ticketing itself, and the extra infrastructure required.

He said the current numbers of spectators were “not only uncomfortable but potentially dangerous”, adding: “This is not something the Mayor wanted to introduce. It is a fairly blunt instrument to try to handle the numbers, but we feel we have no choice. It is unfortunate.”

Met Police Commander Simon Bray added: “The Met’s role is to ensure that the event is safe and as crime free as possible and to work with the other agencies to ensure that people attending the area are kept safe and able to enjoy themselves.

“We will continue our full involvement in the detailed planning for the central London celebrations, working closely with the organisers and other emergency services. We are confident that 2014’s New Year’s celebrations in central London will, as ever, be a great occasion.”

Tickets will go on sale at 12pm on September 26 on a first-come-first-served basis. People will be able to book up to four tickets at a time. Visit www.london.gov.uk/nye.

Decision to charge divides the public

Kate Mead, 24, an accountant from Bermondsey, said: “It’s unfair on families. If you have three children that’s £50 to go. I still think lots of people will attend but it’s likely to stop others from going especially young families with children.”

Sophie Marment, 26, a civil servant from Deptford, said: “It costs a lot of money to put on every year and so many people attend it can cause problems with crowd control. Some friends have spent four hours getting home from the display. It seems a bit unfair to charge people for a display shown on television for free.”

Cleo Cardenaz-Barr, 21, a student from Spitalfields, said: “I’m 50:50 whether this is a good idea because it will help the police control the crowds and cut down on clean up costs. But I don't think this will be a popular decision. On New Year’s Eve you expect to be able to watch the fireworks in your home city for free.”

Midori Yamane, 28, a flight attendant from Kingston, said: “I wouldnt pay £10 because you can just watch it on television. I wanted to watch the firework display this year for the first time but for £10 and travelling from Kingston seems too expensive unless the ticket includes free drinks.”

Liam Mower, 22, a dancer from Walthamstow, said: “The charge won’t put me off as you’re guaranteed a good time. It’s such an amazing place to watch fireworks on the South Bank. Its a stunning view. I’d pay a tenner to get into a club and if the charges makes the display better than so be it.”

Joshua Hanlon, 24, an actor from Gipsy Hill, said: “The charge is good because someone has to clean up afterwards and it can’t be a free for all. There’s too many people here for that.”