Reporting illegal fishing and making a complaint

The Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) encourages genuine licence and permit holders, and the general public, to help protect fisheries by reporting illegal activity and pollution incidents. By reporting these incidents you are helping to improve and protect angling for the future.

Illegal activity

DCAL has found that targeted bailiffing based on detailed information such as dates, times, locations, vehicle registrations and descriptions of offenders has proven to be very effective.

If you know about or suspect illegal fishing, you should contact DCAL by contacting:

• phone: 0300 200 7860 (outside Northern Ireland: 028 9151 3101)
• email: dcalangling@dcalni.gov.uk

If it is outside office hours, or is an emergency, please contact the hotline number below:

• phone: 0800 807 060

Prosecutions

Fisheries Protection Officers continue to apprehend and prosecute those fishing illegally in Northern Ireland waters.

From 1 October 2011 until 31 December 2011 there were 31 convictions in the courts. This brought the yearly total for 2011 to 91.

The highest number of convictions this year have resulted from illegal activity at the River Blackwater, Lough Neagh and White Lough. All waters continue to be monitored in an effort to prevent illegal fishing.

Pollution incidents

In the event of pollution, and/or a fish kill, you should contact the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) pollution hotline.

• phone: 0800 807 060

Enquiries, complaints and compliments

If you have any enquiries, complaints or compliments please contact:

Telephone no:0300 200 7860 (Outside NI: 028 9151 3101)

or by e-mail to dcalangling@dcalni.gov.uk.