OPERATION Clampdown 6 – the annual blitz on illegal coarse fishing during the close season – has launched with 464 reasons not to flout the law.

That’s the current number of Angling Trust volunteer bailiffs in England who will be taking part by keeping watch on their local rivers and reporting any suspect activity to the Environment Agency and police.

That number will also be increasing throughout the close season as more volunteers are inducted into the Voluntary Bailiff Service.

Anyone prosecuted for fishing during the close season, from March 15 to June 15 inclusive, faces a maximum fine of £50,000.

A spokesman for the Environment Agency said: “The message is simple - don’t take the risk of a fine and a criminal conviction. Last year, our enforcement officers ran 670 close season patrols, reporting 122 anglers for illegally fishing in the close season.”