Trust ensuring voices of anglers are heard
READING the latest newsletter from the Angling Trust, they have certainly been busy at Westminster giving evidence to the Fisheries Bill Scrutiny Committee and the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee making sure recreational sea anglers are represented.
We are leaving no stone unturned to make sure recreational fishing has its voice heard as the new Fisheries Bill is developed.
They have also written to HMRC explaining the huge and unnecessary cost of a European Court of Justice ruling banning the UK from allowing recreational vessels to use red diesel - outlining the huge and unnecessary cost this could have for UK boat anglers.
They were also in Brussels along with BASS campaigning for a threefish-a-day bag limit for seven months in 2019 for recreational sea anglers.
Of course this could depend on what happens with Brexit.
They are also trying to secure an amendment to the Fisheries Bill which could ban anglers and bait companies from fishing for sand eel.
Full details should be available on their web site https://www. anglingtrust.net.
With the settled conditions a few boat anglers have been out.
Northeastern Charters had an uptide fishing session out of Sunderland on Sunday and took 30 codling up to 5lb when trying new ground.
Private boat anglers who have been out have had similar catches with a variety of baits taking fish, especially those with plenty of scent in them.
This is the time of year when the big fish should be coming within range and big cocktails fished hard on the bottom could well produce a very big fish.
Shore anglers have also had decent sport but as usual the Christmas period sees very few anglers out.
Those who were have taken good numbers of codling to 5lb from most rock at Beadnell, Seahouses, Cambois, Newbiggin, Marsden, Souter and Ryhope marks with a few better fish in the 7-9lb range with a few bags of cod well into double figures.
Beaches have also fished pretty well with Whitley Bay, Tynemouth and Foxton all producing bags well into double figures, with the best going 7lb.
The Rock marks down at Whitby have also been producing decent bags of codling to 3lb - with again the best going just over 9lb.
Piers, especially South Shields, has seen fish to 5lb with anglers taking up to six or seven fish a session.
The Tyne has been fishing well for codling to 3lb with the upper reaches producing good bags of flounder some going to almost 2lb.
Cumbria marks have produced a few codling with the best going around 5lb, along with a few bass and reasonable numbers of flounder.