I have watched the threads on proposed sea fishing licences for some time and wheresas it would undoubtedly be a good thing for Govt to spend on preserving fish stocks and other environnental issues - IN MY VIEW A LICENCE IS NOT THE ANSWER!!!!!
Having worked for 31 years at quite a senior level in the Civil Service, which included dealing with Ministerial Correspondance, Parliamentary Questions and advising Ministers on policy and policy implications, I can tell you that only part (small?) of any money raised by way of a licence would be spent the way both NESA members and any responsible sea angler would wish. Any Chancellor, no matter what his political persuasion, sees only TAX REVENUE and he has total control over where monies are directed. Simple examples - not all tax received from Nat Ins/ Road Fund Licensing is spent on health/roads etc - only a percentage of it - the remainder drops into The Treasury coffers to be allocated elsewhere as The Chancellor decides. If monies so collected were to be so directed we would be the healthiest nation on earth with the best transport infrastructure too!!!!
Raising the profile of fish stocks and associated issues is to be encouraged but the only positive and productive way forward is to persuade either one of the major parties or the party in power to adopt these strategies as formal policy to be weaved into their respective manifestos thus demonstrating a clear commitment to the electorate, not to look at the issue as a means of levying another tax!
Others my disagree with my views, but they are based on informed opinion and experience of how Govt works.