The head of Birmingham's largest angling association yesterday applauded Conservative plans to scrap the annual fishing rod licence, claiming it was an historical anomaly that punished fisherman. John Williamson, secretary of the Birmingham Anglers' Association, said his group was unfairly targeted by the licence while other, more polluting, river-users paid nothing. His criticism came the day after the Tories pledged to at least look at scrapping the annual rod licence. "There should either be a tax on everyone or no tax at all," said Mr Williamson. "It is an iniquity that only anglers should be paying for the maintenance of the rivers. We would welcome an environment tax that targeted everybody, but not the specific attack of one group. "People who canoe on the river do not have to pay, people who enjoy the views by the river do not have to pay, and even boats chugging up and down the river do not have to pay. "Before you can even join a club or rent a stretch of river you have to pay this licence, which is wrong. Let everybody contribute to the upkeep of the countryside which everybody enjoys." The annual rod licence costs anglers £22.25 a year which they pay at the Post Office and the proceeds go to the Environment Agency for the maintenance of Britain's waterways. The tax raises about £16 million pounds a year, but Conservatives argue that only one in four of the country's estimated four million anglers actually pay the fee. Fishing is the largest participation sport in the country, with anglers contributing more than £3 billion into the economy through tackle and bait. Mr Williamson argued that the licence fee also put young people off getting into the sport. During the 1970s, BAA was the biggest in the country boasting a membership of 70,000 with 1,200 affiliated clubs. Now they have 12,000 registered anglers. Birmingham Anglers' Association charges £24 for access to its 500 miles of rivers and canals across the West Midlands, including parts of the Avon, Severn, the Trent and the Wye. They also include the city's canal network, which Mr Williamson sees as an untapped gem, packed full of fish but often located alongside undesirable tow paths. At the top end of the "game" fishing market - where anglers keep their catch of salmon or trout - they have to pay a licence of £55 a year and often pay hundreds of pounds a day for access to private stretches of the country's rivers. Mr Williamson added anglers were also punished by the seasonal break they were forced to take between March and June. | 
