MORE than 500 rod licences were checked during a crackdown on illegal fishing in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

The checks carried out by the Environment Agency over a ten-day period found that 11 people were fishing without a valid licence.

Around £19m a year is made through rod licences nationally which is invested in fisheries work for the benefit of anglers, fish stocks and the waterside environment.

During the recent hot weather, the Hampshire Fisheries team have sometimes had to work round the clock to save a number of ponds in the area.

Pumps and specialist equipment have been used to add vital oxygen to three important fisheries in the centre of Southampton Mansbridge Reservoir, Shirley Icehouse and Millers Pond.

The Environment Agency's Fisheries team leader for Hampshire, Rob Waring, said: "So far our efforts have been successful and we have saved thousands of fish from suffocating. This would not have been possible without the income from fishing licences.

"Catching the small minority of people who do not have licences is a priority for us as they are effectively cheating other anglers.

"We are determined to do everything we can to ensure that rod licence evasion is kept to a minimum, we will certainly be carrying out further spot checks in the future."