The U.K. Government has rescinded its ban on fishing in England during the third coronavirus-related lockdown, which entered into force earlier this week. The Department for Culture Media and Sport has now confirmed that “fishing is allowed as exercise as long as participants adhere to the rules on staying local, gathering limits, social distancing and limiting the time spent outdoors.”Fishing as exercise must be limited to once a day and overnight fishing remains forbidden. Fishing was initially banned alongside the other non-elite sporting and outdoor activities but the Angling Trust, the national governing body of fishing in England, successfully lobbied to avoid the ban. The U.K. Government ultimately acknowledged that fishing can be seen as exercise, which is limitedly permitted during the lockdown, whereas outdoor recreation is not. The permission involves angling/fishing, including sea fishing off private boats.
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