BASS BAN 2016
MPs back motion over unfair restrictions, but will anything get done without a plan?
A Government minister has admitted that the controversial rules for bass angling imposed for 2016 may have to be revisited, but it is feared that unless anglers continue to press for action, the issue will be shelved until at least December.
Speaking at a backbench debate in the House of Commons, Environment Minister Rory Stewart conceded that Defra may have to look at commercial catch limits next year in order to comply with scientific advice.
He also repeated the Government's offer to work with recreational angling bodies on a long-term management plan for bass that builds on the lessons of the recovery of the striped bass fishery in the USA, where a greater proportion of the stock is reserved for recreational fishing.
It was North Cornwall MP and angler Scott Mann who led a three-hour backbench debate to highlight the unfairness of the bass measures on recreational sea anglers.
The Angling Trust and Bass Anglers’ Sportfishing Society had been involved in securing the debate, but Mr Mann had also been briefed by Cornish campaigners Dr John Tisdale, from Truro, and Paul Moore, of Wadebridge, who provided him with a discussion paper. It has since been sent to Fisheries Minister, George Eustice MP.
The MP moved the motion, which was agreed without dissent: “That this House believes that the recent EU restrictions on recreational sea bass fishing are unfair and fail to address the real threat to the future viability of UK sea bass stocks; and calls on the Government to make representations within the Council of the EU on the reconsideration of the imposition of those restrictions.”
The Angling Trust and BASS want restrictions on commercial harvesting methods, such as gill netting, in favour of sustainable methods, such as hook-and-line fishing, for both the commercial and recreational sectors.
Keep issue alive
Pointing out that anglers cannot keep any bass for the first six months of 2016, and only one a session from July 1, Mr Mann added: "The current situation we find ourselves in is grossly unfair on anglers.”
After watching the debate, Dr Tisdale, a member of the Angling Trust, told Sea Angler: “There was no action plan or time frame agreed. In effect, the issue could disappear until at least next December.”
He believes the Fisheries Minster is looking to move on until the issue is raised again in Europe, but anglers should strive to keep the issue of RSA rights alive.
Martin Salter, Angling Trust's national campaigns chief, said the body understands the genuine anger and frustration of recreational sea anglers at the “appalling way they were treated last year by the EU fisheries ministers.”