ILLEGAL fishing will be targeted by the Environment Agency next month.

Officers will be continuing their crackdown on illegal angling with two bank holiday “blitzes” when they will be out in force patrolling waters throughout the North-East to make sure anglers are fishing in the right place, with the right tackle and a valid licence.

Fisheries Enforcement Officers carried out 265 licence checks at the start of April, to make sure anglers had updated their licences after the old ones expired on 31 March and caught nine people fishing illegally.

Kevin Summerson, fisheries enforcement technical specialist at the Environment Agency said: “The Environment Agency carries out enforcement work all year round, but this time of year is particularly important because of breeding fish.

“Our work is intelligence-led, meaning we target known hot-spots and act on reports of illegal fishing.

“It’s an offence that we take very seriously – it’s not fair on other anglers, and endangers the future of the sport.

“We urge people to help us protect the health of our fisheries by reporting any suspected illegal activity.”

The maximum fine for fishing without a licence is £2,500.

Annual rod licences for trout and coarse fishing are £5 for 12 to 16 year olds, £18 for senior and disabled concessions and £27 full price.

Children under 12 can fish for free.

Licences can be bought online from the Post Office website.

To report an illegal angler call 0800-807060.