Don’t Get Him Started #8

Some time ago, I made an agreement with myself, and that was to never get involved with angling politics ever again. Many years ago I wanted to do something about the illegal importation of carp into this country and toughen up the laws concerning the legal trade. However, I was deluded to think that the majority of carp anglers would agree with that stance, after all, what did it matter that thousands of carp had to die to satisfy an individual's need for a fleeting moment of glory? Apart from a small band of members, for whom I will always have the utmost respect, no one really gave a stuff about such matters. Indeed, we probably gave a lot of people a platform to turn our hard work into a twisted message that meant something quite different. The Keep It Rectal Brigade started to slag people off and very quickly the divide became something of a chasm. We had lost everyone's ear, and from that point on we would never have the membership to carry the fight on at government level. In saying that, ECHO was mentioned in the House of Commons and thanked for its efforts; at least someone understood what we wanted to do!

Come forward a fair few years and the re-emergence of the otter is starting to make a huge impact on fisheries in Britain. This in turn created a rather unique situation that for many years had been addressed by a very tenacious, but often overlooked, angling hero by the name of Chris Burt. For 25 years Chris had been doing his level best to bring the otter situation to the fore, but no one really took any notice. Not until it was far too late of course! All of a sudden everyone is up in arms, and a few worthies (of which, initially, I was one) tried to do something about it. With the formation of the Angling Trust, it was hoped that angling would have a single voice to represent it; indeed, it was ECHO that illuminated the path that they would follow. We also gave ECHO a sword to fall on, dissolving the most influential single species angling organisation ever formed, in favour of an all encompassing one was the most positive signal we could send to everyone. The Predation Action Group was then formed, because the Trust couldn't take on the necessary work as it was afraid of the political fall out if it took on the cormorant and otter situation (and there was me thinking it was going to defend angling, how silly of me). It was around this time, not that my decision made one iota of difference, to withdraw myself from the political arena. A decision that was made even easier when I found out the Chairman of the Angling Trust, which had at the time some 17,000 paying members, couldn?t afford to pay him his £25,000 annual wages, so guess who did? Yep, ECHO, and we were doing that for some considerable time! Yet, having opened a multitude of doors for the Trust, I was ignored and my assistance was never asked for. It was an easy decision really! 

The problem now is that some believe things are being done on behalf of angling, but in reality they are not. The otter situation is totally unique, in that we are trying to do something about the second cuddliest animal on the planet. Only the dolphin elicits more votes in the most popular category. In essence, we can do absolutely nothing about the problem and to suggest we can is lunacy.

The only place we (anglers) can turn for help is to the Environment Agency (EA), an arm of government that I can say through bitter experience, is the most inept department every created. It is not that the people who work for it are inept, because I have met and worked with some of the most passionate individuals there, it is the legislation they work under that makes the whole thing so impotent. On numerous occasions ECHO gave the Agency several of the highest profile fish farmers/owners on a proverbial plate. Even going so far as to have approximately 50 fish returned to their Chanticoque home before being picked up by the famous person who had organised the trip, and they messed it all up. The same has happened with the otter situation, it has gone too far, and they lack the bollocks to do what is really necessary. They say that otters are no longer being re-introduced, but they are, and they are also being re-distributed to areas that have never seen them before. Yet nothing is done. Oh, hang on a minute, they did do something, and that was to set up a fund to help fisheries erect otter fencing. They very kindly put £150,000 into an account, and if you know anything about otter fencing, this would probably just about do one single two-acre lake. Nice of them to help so much, considering the money we pay for licence fees!

At the end of the day we really must learn to look after ourselves, which is a difficult concept for some to grasp. If, as a massive percentage of the population, we learn to fight as a single entity, just think of the power we could weald. The fact is we can do nothing about otters, we have to learn to live with them I'm afraid. To do anything else puts angling in a very bad light and brings the attention of the antis to bear. Unfortunately, the dream of unity is just that: a dream. 

Whilst moronic, brainless, idiots spout senseless crap on Farcebook, Twatter and other social media, such as wishing some otters would get to a certain fishery and eat the carp there, we have little chance of showing the anti's that we really do care. And the fact that the trade, the media and some anglers treat those sort of people with a perverse kind of hero worship, should indicate that angling is anything but a united front. The time for that (if it ever comes) is a long way down the road I am afraid, and we only have ourselves to blame! Only my opinion of course. Laters.

This article was taken from issue 109 of CARPology magazine. For the very latest articles and best deals subscribe to CARPology magazine.