The Angling Trust – Getting Us Fishing in Lockdown

I’ve been a paid-up member of the Angling Trust since it formed (by default at first, having had an Anglers Conservation Association membership before it became part of the AT). I’ve never really shouted about it but I’ve always felt it’s valuable to be a part of something which gives anglers a voice in parliament, stands up for conservation efforts & anglers’ interests and takes action against pollution. Events over the past year have affected how I feel about the organisation as a whole and it’s inspired me to be more vocal in my overall support; to do what I can to highlight the good work done by the Trust – in the name of all anglers, whether members or not.

Over the years I’ve seen a lot of comments about the AT on social media. This is far from scientific, but I would say a majority of them were derogatory (I’ve also seen plenty of comments which appear to confuse the responsibilities of the AT with those of the EA, and several where the poster appears to think they’re one and the same organisation!). Opinions vary but, as is often the case in life, people are more likely to criticise an organisation than to celebrate it. It’s easier to moan and pick fault than it is to praise success. But I feel that those who regularly criticise the work of the AT perhaps focus on single issues rather than the bigger picture, or fail to grasp the game of politics organisations & governing bodies such as the AT have to play to effect change in the long-term.

Of  course there’s the eternally thorny issue of predation, which anglers have always had to deal with and (regardless of what many seem to think) always will, which divides opinion massively. The Angling Trust is in a no-win situation with this. If it takes a lenient stance, which is likely to show angling in a favourable light with the general public and politicians, it’s bemoaned by anglers as not doing enough. If it adopted a more militant stance, akin to that of the Predation Action Group, it risks being viewed from the outside as a marginal, non-mainstream organisation – which would lessen its political sway on other matters and subsequently harm angling in many ways. This might be acceptable to a smaller organisation, such as PAG, which is not officially recognised as the body governing the whole sport. But for a governing body, a lack of political clout would render it effectively impotent and, therefore, pointless.

They’re forever fighting against the turning of slow-moving political cogs. Career party politicians whose main focus is becoming popular enough to help their party get into power, or remaining popular enough to help their party remain in power. Legislation changes can take years to bring about – especially with the political turmoil of recent years, with election after election, reshuffle following reshuffle. Unless your cause is something a vocal majority of the population is likely to support, a high-profile short-term campaign is unlikely to effect any change. It’s not necessarily how things should work, but it’s the reality of how they do.

When angling was allowed, along with a few other activities, during the first National Lockdown the Angling Trust were quick to take credit for this. I was initially cynical that the Government’s decision had anything to do with the lobbying work of the Angling Trust. It seemed like they may have been taking credit for something that would have happened anyway. Come this month’s Lockdown (January 2021), and it became glaringly obvious to me and, I think, many others that the Angling Trust had single-handedly and remarkably swiftly convinced those in power to give recreational freshwater fishing the green light.

By my reckoning it took the Angling Trust all of 36 hours to secure an exemption for fishing – during which time the Government would have had thousands of things to consider. How on earth recreational angling made it up the priority list so quickly, I don’t know – but someone at the Angling Trust does. They know exactly what they’re doing. They know who to put the calls in to and when, and they’re exactly the people we need on angling’s side. We’re lucky to have them.

Such was the competence shown by the AT in achieving their objectives that I even joked with people that they must have some serious dirt on a politician in high office! Surely only a threat of “It would be a shame for those pictures to end up on the front pages…” could have resulted in such swift progress! (I joke)

Many recreational pursuits and hobbies – even outdoor ones (golf being the most high profile example) have not had the political clout angling has. This may not be solely down to poor performance from their relevant governing bodies, it could be in part down practicalities and other factors, but our Angling Trust made it happen when others didn’t. People were allowed to fish when they weren’t allowed to play golf!

Sure, there were some rules & restrictions – there had to be – but there were no caveats applied as to whom could fish – for example, those fishing in Lockdown did not need to be members of the Angling Trust. This for me was an important fact which was not picked up on by many. The Trust could have thrown that one in there as either: a way to generate more membership revenue, or a condition which made the Government more likely to accept concessions which allowed angling. But they didn’t. Angling was as accessible to a fully-paid up AT member who’d fished for forty years as it was for an absolute beginner who got a fishing rod for Christmas. Just as it should be.

Somehow, in the midst of all the political toing and froing of successfully getting us all fishing again, the AT also launched the Anglers Against Pollution campaign (albeit slightly lower key than it should be, in my opinion) – universally the biggest threat to fishing and fisheries (aside from, perhaps, climate change), and something which all anglers can support.

One of the biggest positives to come out of the past year, for all anglers and people in the angling trade, has been the number of people fishing. This includes those who’ve been attracted into trying fishing for the first time and those who have dusted off their old tackle to return to angling for the first time in years. Sure, once the pubs, golf courses and gyms reopen we’re likely to see numbers drop a little, but this injection of new blood into angling has come at a time when I think our sport really needed it. This is all down to angling being allowed when the aforementioned places were closed and, if we can retain even a small percentage of these new anglers for years to come, it only adds to the success story of the Angling Trust during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Just like any political party, I won’t agree with everything they say or do, but as long as I consider they are mostly working in the best interests of angling, I will continue to support them. For now, they deserve the praise and unequivocal support of all anglers, for they have done us proud when we needed them most.

Please, whether you’re a new convert to angling or a seasoned expert, join the Angling Trust. If the sub-£30 annual fee is unaffordable, please support them by sharing their campaigns & successes on social media. Show them the support that they showed us.

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In response to various allegations, cynicism and misconceptions around the AT’s efforts of getting fishing in Lockdown on the agenda, they put out the following blog post: https://linesonthewater.anglingtrust.net/2021/01/13/lockdown-fishing-how-to-fish-legally-safely-and-responsibly-and-how-we-got-there/