A letter for you to puruse and cogitate over.....

[Bob Bradford]

Please read and record your comments below;

 

LETTER TO ACA MEMBERS

 

Unified Body to Represent Angling, Fisheries and Conservation

 

I am writing to advise you of a potential development that could change the face of angling in this country. In the past there have been several half-hearted attempts to replicate the success of other major sports by creating a single body that would represent and support all angling disciplines. However, all these attempts failed, largely because parochial considerations were allowed to cloud the bigger picture.

 

Recent discussions between representatives of the major angling bodies have been different in that they have concentrated on the key question: "what is best for angling?" The answer to this question has led to the incontrovertible conclusion that, if angling is to have any hope of being able to punch its weight at a national level in the future, we all need to set aside our differences and unite into a single national body.

 

Therefore, after careful consideration of the pros and cons, the ACA Committee has decided to embrace the principle of joining with the Salmon and Trout Association, National Association of Fisheries and Angling Consultatives, and the National Federation of Anglers to create a single body that will provide a strong unified voice for angling, fisheries and aquatic conservation. These organisations have taken a similar decision and we expect the National Federation of Sea Anglers to join the unification process in the spring.

 

Our sport and the waters that support it face sophisticated and complex threats. Whilst we have been able to punch well above our weight as a relatively small organisation, we are acutely aware that to take on the really heavy weight challenges to angling and the water environment we will need to increase the scale of our operations by an order of magnitude. Our goal of pure and clean waters is much more likely to be achieved with better resources and weight of numbers.

 

Before any of this can become a reality, we will need to seek your support. We have not yet reached a point of no return in our discussions and there is much detailed work to be done before we do. However, I believe things have now progressed sufficiently for me to let you know what is happening and to highlight some of the perceived benefits that the proposed new organisation will bring (please see the enclosed list). We hope to proceed via a special resolution to the AGM in April 2008.

 

If and when the new unified body is established, the process of transferring administrative and operational services will begin. It is hoped that this will appear seamless to you, although there will be some fairly frantic activity going on behind the scenes. If everything went to plan, the only change that you would see, apart from an improvement in services and support, would be that from 2009 your membership subscription would be paid to the new unified body.

 

In the meantime, please let me have your views, by post or email as you have done so often in the past and be assured that there will be absolutely no lessening of the services we already provide to you.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Stephen Marsh-Smith

 

Chairman

[Bob Bradford]

Stunned silence, best describes the response then?

[Tatts64]

Hi Bob

 

Was this a message for all to read thru or just the ACA members?

 

I'l assume you meant it for all, ok.

 

To be honest with you, I cannot understand why there is not just one main body to represent the interests of ALL anglers. No matter what flavour of water they fish in or bait they use. Obviously, there would need to be subdivisions to handle issues within the various branches of the sport. But for so long now, the UK's anglers have all sat there shaking their own little rattles in the air instead of having one loud voice to air their views and issues, that I honestly believe its been counter-productive.

 

Anyway, good luck with it all. ESPECIALLY the dreaded paperwork side of things

 

Andy

[Cranfield]

As an ACA member, my concern is that with the mass amalgamation of all these bodies, with the wild variation in the quality of their elected/non elected Management, the wrong people could end up at the top of this very important tree.

 

Politically aware people and good administrators we need, I worry a lot about the over enthusiastic conservationist and self aggrandisement bunch.

 

Methinks its time to do an audit of who I am supporting, financially and otherwise.

[Tatts64]

As an ACA member, my concern is that with the mass amalgamation of all these bodies, with the wild variation in the quality of their elected/non elected Management, the wrong people could end up at the top of this very important tree.

 

Politically aware people and good administrators we need, I worry a lot about the over enthusiastic conservationist and self aggrandisement bunch.

 

Methinks its time to do an audit of who I am supporting, financially and otherwise.

 

 

Hi Cranfield

 

Sorry to sound stupid, thick or anything else, but what on earth are "self aggrandisement" people?

 

I really should have attended school a little more often!

 

Andy

[Jim Roper]

Hi Cranfield

 

Sorry to sound stupid, thick or anything else, but what on earth are "self aggrandisement" people?

 

I really should have attended school a little more often!

 

Andy

 

Those on an ego trip?

 

Those whose politics is that of jealousy?

 

Those whose politics is that of greed?

 

Those who just want POWER?

 

Those who think everybody else is daft?

 

Those who think they know best?

 

 

If the the shooting experience is anything to go by, a lot of people are going to be ignored by those who have the law-makers' ear!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Cranfield]

Hi Cranfield

 

Sorry to sound stupid, thick or anything else, but what on earth are "self aggrandisement" people?

 

I really should have attended school a little more often!

 

Andy

 

From the Dictionary "an act undertaken to increase your own power and influence or to draw attention to your own importance"

[Tatts64]

From the Dictionary "an act undertaken to increase your own power and influence or to draw attention to your own importance"

 

 

Cheers mate.

 

I wasn't taking the P, I just truly didn't know and not having a dictionary, it left me kind of stumped but interested too in its meaning.

 

Funny how our local and national govt is full of such people though. What amazes me is how they manage to talk others into voting for them!

 

 

Andy

[kleinboet]

The idea is spot on! The actual nuts and bolts need a lot of work. It certainly has my backing, but I think it may be a pipe dream.

What the various organisations should be doing is looking at a departmental store, how it is run - womens underwear next to womens blouses which is next to womens skirts - these are all part of the main theme but there is no bickering between the departments.

The top management needs a organiser rather than top sportsperson, someone who will look at the nuts and bolts of the actual day to day runnning - someone who will not be swayed to lean one way or another.

The board must be carefully chosen - not the golden boy/girl of a particular discipline, but someone who, although loyal to his/her individual discipline, is sympathetic to the others, AND TOTALLY COMMITTED TO THE MAIN ORGANISATION!!! They MUST be able to keep their section in check if there is a revolt building, and be a good communicator to keep people focussed on the big picture!

 

Just a few thoughts of MHO.

[steve good]

Hi ALL

 

Fact is if you all unite then that would lead to exactly how many people are represented by RSA reps and if that represention is only 5% of the total amount of anglers as stated in the Net Benifits report then you represent hardy anybody.

 

Interesting scenario what

 

steve