In article , H. Neary.
wrote:
Anyone hear this on todays news? £22-00 PA for "conservation of
stocks" for anglers.

Does anyone see this as anything but another ruse to rob the British
public of yet more taxes?

Given the current chancellor?
Of course it's a ruse to claw in a few more taxes.

It might also be some sort of ruse to split the anglers from the hunters and
fishers - it's probable that the anti-hunting bill will come back in the
autumn but there's an election soon after.

New Lab reckon they can safely antagonise the countryside - they don't get
many votes there in any case but they know that several million angling
voters live in their core constituencies. This way they can claim to
anglers that they're looking to a future for angling, to the antis that
they are controlling anglers and to the newspapers that they are a caring
party and they feel our pain.

However, it might work to our advantage in the long run:

If they're going to tax it they're also going to have to justify taxing it.
Iow they'll have to be -seen- to be doing something.

OK, this lot will just pass a couple of laws and ignore the consequences but
as relatively few politicians fish it's an area where a bit of lobbying
might work. Within a year you'll have a chance to talk to tackle them on the
matter when they ask for your vote.

[Akaik the only PM to do any fishing since the 60s was John Major and even
he seems to prefer cricket.]

Now if you -really- want New Lab to take angling seriously and be ready to
make concessions turn out and support the hunters (make it clear you're an
angler) - any MP with less than a vast majority is going to sweat a bit and
start worrying...

But yes, at base it's a ruse to claw in a few more taxes.

Cheerio,

--