Riparian ownership in England is a very contentious issue and, for me, the idea of actually owning a section of river just because it passes by your land seems wrong. I have no problem with rod licences if the money goes into conservation nor with catch limits by size and quantity. Perhaps even the same regs as for some foraging in that it is for your family not for sale.
Gone Fishin'
- Thread starter John Fenna
- Start date
Give over guys - fish are not worth a row about.
Wretched things barely count as food....
Now - if it was about the best Black Puddins then a row would be well in order!
Wretched things barely count as food....
Now - if it was about the best Black Puddins then a row would be well in order!
.....As an example, lets say tomorrow all fishing regulations were dropped, or to be a fairer comparison were bought in line with fishing regulation for aboriginal tribes in the rain forest.
How long do you think the fish population would last, 6 months, a year?....
......Some has to maintain those lakes, rivers, so you can enjoy them, why should you get something for free when the rest of us have to work and earn money to do the same?.....
......To sum up my opinion it's that by charging these license fees it means there are actually fish out there to catch, if it wasn't licensed it wouldn't matter as they'd be no fish left anyways
To be honest, I don't think anybody here disagrees with you on these points as such (I know I certainly agree with you) Rather I think most are arguing that the regs and license fees are excessive. NOT for abolishing said fees and regs, but for making them more reasonable and affordable for common people.
I stated already i'd gladly pay but that the price expected was out of my reach and anyone of my budget, the reason i know the exact price is i went online to buy my permits and realised i could have a week in the Algarve for the same cost and i bet whilst there i could fish there for better fishing for less 
, nothing more, i don't want anything free, i want to be free.
, nothing more, i don't want anything free, i want to be free.
The vast majority of land in the uk is owned by a very small handful of titled folk, and they are not funded by its value as agricultural land, [which only accounts for something like 0.3% of the GDP] or fishing rights, or in Scotland, say, grouse moor shooting. They are funded by EU Grants, and subsidies. Which amounts to hundreds of millions per year. Which actually comes from us poor suckers. The poorest taxpayers..So M'lud, and M'lady are actually really very rich benefit cheats.
What the government should do is introduce a land value tax. That way land which was productive would pay its own way.
[A land Value Tax wouldnt cost us poor shcmo's any more, it would just replace our council taxes, and maybe income tax. It was proposed by Lloyd George in his 1909 peoples budget, but blocked by the house of lords for obvious reasons...]
Just the same way that if there was any justice, santaman would actually be paying his $12 to some 10,000 year old local native american tribe to go fishing...
That why, as a fisherman and a canoeist, find it ridiculous to be arguing one corner or the other, as the entire reason there is an argument is because the UK has the worst dictatorship of land, and land based wealth, with the exception, maybe of Brazil, anywhere on the planet.
And all that land was nicked from our ancestors, tens of millions of acres of common land, who were evicted, starved out and murdered. All conveniently collectively wiped from the national memory.
Unfortunately, theres not much I can do about that, I do enjoy a well cooked trout though.
What the government should do is introduce a land value tax. That way land which was productive would pay its own way.
[A land Value Tax wouldnt cost us poor shcmo's any more, it would just replace our council taxes, and maybe income tax. It was proposed by Lloyd George in his 1909 peoples budget, but blocked by the house of lords for obvious reasons...]
Just the same way that if there was any justice, santaman would actually be paying his $12 to some 10,000 year old local native american tribe to go fishing...
That why, as a fisherman and a canoeist, find it ridiculous to be arguing one corner or the other, as the entire reason there is an argument is because the UK has the worst dictatorship of land, and land based wealth, with the exception, maybe of Brazil, anywhere on the planet.
And all that land was nicked from our ancestors, tens of millions of acres of common land, who were evicted, starved out and murdered. All conveniently collectively wiped from the national memory.
Unfortunately, theres not much I can do about that, I do enjoy a well cooked trout though.
Last edited:
Some truth to that; but then would they have to pass it on to the tribes they took it from? And on back to the tribe before? Conquest is as old as mankind.
But if just to the most recent tribes, I'd be paying it to members of my family then? Native American Indian blood isn't uncommon here. My grandson is past Native American As are some of my Latina cousins. In fact almost ALL Latinos and Latinas have a fair amount of Native genes.
Last edited:
Fair enough mate.
I think the price of the fees is relative though.
To a regular fisherman it is certainly a fair wack, but compared to the value of his rods and kit though it's a drop in the ocean.
To someone that's looking for a cheap/free lunch i can understand it seems excessive.
There is a price point where it will dissuade any non enthusiasts from paying, but won't stop enthusiasts from partaking, i think the current pricing is reasonable.
The other thing is, that's only Loch Lomond, there are other solutions for cheaper or even free fishing.
I stated already i'd gladly pay but that the price expected was out of my reach and anyone of my budget, the reason i know the exact price is i went online to buy my permits and realised i could have a week in the Algarve for the same cost and i bet whilst there i could fish there for better fishing for less
No such thing as a free lunch though mate.
Even if the eater hasn't paid someone somewhere down the line has or will do.
The vast majority of land in the uk is owned by a very small handful of titled folk, and they are not funded by its value as agricultural land, [which only accounts for something like 0.3% of the GDP] or fishing rights, or in Scotland, say, grouse moor shooting. They are funded by EU Grants, and subsidies. Which amounts to hundreds of millions per year. Which actually comes from us poor suckers. The poorest taxpayers..So M'lud, and M'lady are actually really very rich benefit cheats.
What the government should do is introduce a land value tax. That way land which was productive would pay its own way.
[A land Value Tax wouldnt cost us poor shcmo's any more, it would just replace our council taxes, and maybe income tax. It was proposed by Lloyd George in his 1909 peoples budget, but blocked by the house of lords for obvious reasons...]
Just the same way that if there was any justice, santaman would actually be paying his $12 to some 10,000 year old local native american tribe to go fishing...
That why, as a fisherman and a canoeist, find it ridiculous to be arguing one corner or the other, as the entire reason there is an argument is because the UK has the worst dictatorship of land, and land based wealth, with the exception, maybe of Brazil, anywhere on the planet.
And all that land was nicked from our ancestors, tens of millions of acres of common land, who were evicted, starved out and murdered. All conveniently collectively wiped from the national memory.
Unfortunately, theres not much I can do about that, I do enjoy a well cooked trout though.
Some good points Dave.
I will put my hand up and admit that i did for some time own fishing rights on a stretch of water.
As a fisherman it made sense to mix my hobby with an investment.
Should say that i've never been given anything in my life, i've worked hard all my life and managed my money well, i've certainly not come from a privileged background of any way shape or form.
It'll need some hard work and determination but there is no reason why anyone who wasn't committed enough couldn't buy their own land and/or stretch of water.
Yep. Even freedom itself isn't free. It's bought and paid for by soldiers' blood.
Nothing wrong with that. Most of us have thought of earning a living from the things we love doing. Some have tried it with varying degrees of success.
The water companies tend to own the water. They are allowed to charge you for collecting their rain in your water butt (how's that for a load of hogwash). None do as far as I know. Ah well, when the revolution comes they'll be the first against the wall. (That's a joke GCHQ, stop reading my posts)
You just hit another sore spot for me there Blaidd, Northumbrian Water owns my local reservoir (i used to always pay my water rates), took a kayak up last week after seeing pics on their website of people kayaking on it but no other info regarding kayaking, on arrival was told that i could not kayak on it due to the rights to use a boat on it owned by the sailing club and i had to contact them, so i did and they (insert your favourite swear word please) told me they wanted £55 per person per day for me to use my own boat on the water??? Was not a happy chap, came home and cancelled my water rates direct debit in personal protest, they can go jump for it.
There's a canoe club at newburn. Im surprised there's nothing done by your local council. Theres a few lakes near me, where you can go and launch your own boat, for a £6 fee. They have paynplay sessions, with council lifeguards present, and a few of them are BCU trained coaches, for 1to1 lessons if you want to hire them.
In fact, I practice stuff like self rescues there, and they always watch and help out, with advice for free...[obviously they are council employees]
Last edited:
I grew up in Marlborough, and we regularly used to pull a couple of trout out of the Kennet with a hand line to either eat or sell to fund whatever scheme us 11/12 year olds were up to, nobody ever told us off, most people were happy to see us doing it. But the Lords and ladies attitude of the town is very evident these days, the town council is just a bunch if people playing one upmanship
Agreed, fish are ok but to me will always be viewed as survival food
I have not checked out newburn yet strangely as i have paddle past it a lot and do not enjoy that part of the river, i was originally planning to join Prudhoe CaKC but then seen a disability clause in their membership form which basically excludes myself from joining them
copy and pasted direct from the membership form
copy and pasted direct from the membership form
I contracted a rare and incurable illness myself, a few years ago. They dont know what caused it, or how to treat it. Sucks doesnt it? Very debilitating. Makes everything about ten times harder. But also makes you more determined to get out as and when you can eh?
