LOCAL MP Ian Liddell-Grainger this week called for a ban on anglers fishing from Blue Anchor seafront – and sparked off a controversy when councillors and residents rallied to their defence.

Mr Liddell-Grainger said fishermen were congregating in ‘unacceptably large numbers’ and obstructing hundreds of yards of the pavement to the inconvenience of other users.

He was backed by posts on social media which claimed that fishermen had been seen ‘chucking their rubbish into the sea’, littering the pavement with fish remains, bait bags, food wrappers, bottles and tins, and refusing to pick it up when confronted by passers-by.

Another Facebook post said: “Locals are understandably upset and are noting car numbers during high tide and taking pictures of those they suspect of littering. The intention is to get fishing banned from the seawall.”

But Cllr Geoff Williams, chairman of Old Cleeve Parish Council, which is responsible for half the seafront, said this week that the council had never received any complaints about the behaviour of fishermen and that they were welcome visitors.

“I am sure we would have been told of any excessive littering or bad behaviour,” Cllr Williams said. “Fishermen have been coming here for decades and are part of the local scene.”

He was backed by a resident of Blue Anchor for over 50 years who said: “I have been walking along the seafront since childhood and the fishermen have never been a problem. They are always polite and friendly and enjoy a chat, and no-one I know wants them to be prevented from fishing. It would be very sad if they were stopped from coming.”

For the full story, see this week’s West Somerset Free Press.