Just under a quarter of a century ago, the Government rowed back on their plans to impose a charge for anglers and it has now emerged this week that the Government is to charge a compulsory anglers’ registration fee as part of new legistlation.

The news came from the Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland (TAFI), who were informed by the CEO of Inland Fisheries Ireland that this charge will apply to every angler in Ireland. TAFI have said that this charge will be detrimental to the fishing clubs and it has been unanimously agreed across the provincial councils that these charges be rejected.

An officer of the Munster Council spoke to The Avondhu about the ramifications of such a charge, saying that people wouldn’t join clubs if this charge is introduced and that would mean that there would be no watchdogs on the local rivers.

This Avondhu reporter is personally aware of the work that these clubs do, as the Mitchelstown Trout Anglers were on scene within hours when there was a large fish kill in Mitchelstown earlier this year.

Since the foundation of the State, trout angling clubs have maintained and developed the waters under their control, out of their own pockets without any State funding.

“As the guardians of the waters, they provide fishing for the natives and tourists in pursuit of a healthy outdoor sport. The Government, ever anxious to add to revenues, have always seen this sporting activity as a potential monetary source,” the Munster Council officer said.

Charges for anglers have a long and controversial history in Ireland, going back as far as 1966, when an attempt was first made to introduce a licence by Minister Charles Haughey. However, once he realised the strength of opposition against such a charge, he dropped the idea, only for it to be rekindled by the late Brian Lenihan in 1978.

This attempt also failed and another attempt to introduce a charge was made in 1984, but in December 1987, under the cover of the seasonal Christmas hype, the rod licence act was rushed through the Dail and it slipped under the radar, coming into effect on January 1, 1988. 

“Club waters never had an input from public funds, so the licence was seen as a ‘fee to fish for your own trout’. So, the rod war commenced with clubs closing their fisheries, anglers spontaneously refrained from fishing and resorted to protests and marches.

“The boycott went on through 1988 and 1989 when the Fianna Fail Government suffered severe losses in the 1989 election and the west of Ireland lost over £6 million a year in tourism revenue. So the new minister John Wilson set about resolving the dispute before the fishing season,” the Munster Council officer told The Avondhu.

The act was then withdrawn by the minister, which was ‘something that was unheard of’.

The officer who spoke to The Avondhu said that it was now hard to understand, given all of that history, why a Government is again embarking on a similar anglers’ charge. He said imposing the charge would have little financial benefit for the Government.

It all begs the question, when will they ever learn? To be successful the co-operation of the angling workforce is essential.

“The Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland have this week circulated a letter to each member of the Oireachtas, setting out their opposition to any compulsory angler registration charge. it is likely that another rod war looms,” the officer of the Munster Council concluded.