Sea anglers won’t bite licensing bait

A carrot and stick promise of improved services and benefits but with a license scheme to fund them is the core of proposals by the government to develop recreational sea angling (RSA) in England and Wales.

The environment department (Defra) says it wants RSA to be developed within a framework recognising both its economic importance and reliance on effective management of fishstocks.

The National Federation of Sea Anglers (NFSA) strongly opposes licenses for shore and boat fishing unless Defra first delivers tangible improvements for sea angling. It has kept Defra informed of anglers’ views on its emerging proposals for over two years.

In a White Paper* Defra says it will “help support” actions to improve sea angling but only after making anglers buy licenses to fish.

“That means sea anglers would be paying to put right the damage caused by years of over exploitation by commercial fishing allowed through the neglect of successive governments,” said Richard Ferré, chairman of the NFSA “That is Defra’s responsibility.

“Overfishing must be stopped to allow fish to grow larger and anglers must have better access to fishing before they will countenance licensing,” he said.


“Until that happens there are few fish in the sea worth buying a license to
catch.

Defra should first provide the scientific data needed to manage fishstocks,
protect and improve access for anglers to beaches, shore structures and car
parking and create both artificial reefs to attract fish and more facilities to
launch small boats.

He said anglers feared any licence money would go largely to pay for a new
organisation to issue and enforce licenses and none used to continue to improve
future sea angling.

Defra also wants license money to pay to display rules, codes of conduct and
other data on the shore, at boat launching sites and aboard angling charter
vessels.

Mr. Ferré believes the Marine Bill is unlikely to come into force until 2009.
“That gives plenty of time for Defra to show its commitment to provide the
conditions for sea angling to continue to thrive and increase its already
substantial contribution to the coastal economies of England and Wales.”

The white paper says controls will only be imposed on recreational sea
angling on a case-by-case basis, for particular species “where justified on
conservation or enforcement grounds.” and they would be subject to consultation.

It admits there had been mixed reactions to licensing and bag limits from
anglers and other interested parties as a means of controlling their activities
but asserted there was some support provided there were clear benefits to
anglers from the revenue generated.

Defra says it wants sea fisheries committees (SFCs) to be effective and to
focus firmly on fisheries activities and their impact on the conservation of the
marine ecosystem. Membership of each committee should be limited to 15
including seven representing commercial fishing and recreational angling.

It wants SFCs able to introduce interim measures at short notice to prevent,
stop or introduce restrictions on damaging activities such as new types of
destructive fishing gear or to regulate long-standing practices in the light of
new information.

The White Paper highlights the impact on the marine environment of many
activities including bait digging and bait collection. It proposes that sea
fisheries committees will in future manage this through by-laws.

On marine protected areas (MPAs) the white paper says that the government has
an obligation to establish an ecologically coherent network of them and that
responses to the marine bill consultation document last year “indicated
overwhelming support” for such areas focussed on the conservation of biodiversity.

Sea anglers and everyone else interested have until June 15 to tell Defra how
and why they believe the proposals in the White Paper should be changed.