Eurocrats seek control of sporting anglers’ catches

Monday 26th January 2009, 2:29PM GMT.

FORCING recreational fishermen to record their catches is unmanageable, according to Guernsey Press angling correspondent Len Le Page (pictured).

The European Union wants to change the way fishing quotas are distributed.

Every member nation currently has a quota for commercial fishing but, under the proposal, recreational catches would count against the total allowed.

Recreational sea anglers would need to be allocated a share of the national quota and the move looks set to infuriate commercial and spare-time fishermen alike.

Lobbying against the proposal has already begun in the UK by organisations that do not want to see Britain’s 1.4m. sea anglers have their hobby turned into a laborious form-filling exercise.

Any new rules would automatically apply locally, Commerce and Employment has confirmed, but Mr Le Page questioned how the new regulation, likely to come into effect in 2013, would be enforced.

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1
Jackie

January 26, 2009 at 3:00 pm

Will that include caboos? I just don’t want my sons crimanalised :)

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2
Carts

January 26, 2009 at 5:53 pm

What is their definition of recreational, do they really mean local hobby fishermen that potter out once a week or those cunning chaps that line catch fish and sell them to market?
What if the angler is European visitor…does his catch count towards Guernsey’s quota or his home country?
If recreational quotas are achieved early in the season will anglers and Charter boat captains be forced to stay moored up?
Why does Guernsey even need to adhere to EU rulings, especially when they are so ridiculous?
Isn’t it time we had an aggressive and passionate lobby to keep Guernsey’s waters protected from the EU based pirates that raid our waters and deplete future stocks. Guernsey is a tiny island but blessed with some of the best water and fishing opportunities in Europe, the envy of the EU bureaucrats that would include us in their mess.
I’ve never understood why this natural bounty isn’t properly protected and developed as a tourist and produce industry.
Now would be a good time to find a little bit of back bone, a high profile minister, preferably with teeth and not bothered about losing friends in Whitehall, and fiercely challenge this ludicrous erosion of common sense. There are many other ways of managing quotas and ensuring catch limits and conservation is observed….targeted at those that do the most harm with over fishing and have the most to gain by bending the rules, not the recreational angler.

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3
GsyGal

January 27, 2009 at 9:12 am

Just what i was thinking Jackie.
I remember going fishing and not knowing what type of fish i had caught, so how id have filled a form out i dont know.

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