FACT Meets the Home Office

Following a meeting with Jim Glasspool and John Slader of Fisheries and Angling Conservation Trust, FACT, and Martin Salter MP, Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker confirmed that the Government and the police take very seriously any unlawful activity that targets anglers. Mr Coaker also confirmed that new measures in the Serious and Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 can be used against animal rights extremists who target anglers. The new law came into effect on 1st July 2005.

Mr Salter organised the delegation to the Minister in light of the appalling incident which took place last summer at Bank House Fly Fishery when anglers where attacked by animal rights activists.

In the meeting Mr Coaker, who is the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Home Office with responsibility for animal rights extremism, reassured the angling community that such attacks on anglers are thankfully rare, and as such, is very keen that anglers are not deterred from the waterside.

Mr Coaker also confirmed that under Section 125 of the Serious and Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 "Harassment intended to deter lawful activities" a person must not engage in:

“a course of conduct which involves harassment of two or more persons and which he knows, or ought to know, involves harassment of those persons, and by which they intended to persuade any person not to do something that he is entitled to do or to do something that he is not under any obligation to do.”

The maximum penalty for breaching this section is 6 months imprisonment and/or a fine of up to £5,000. This law allows the police to deal effectively with intimidatory tactics by animal rights extremists and shows that anglers are protected by the law.

Now all we need is for the police to enforce the law!!