The summer parliamentary recess gives me a chance to lead a more normal existence. There’s no late night sittings to endure, very little commuting to London and working 9-5 in my constituency office seems a doddle compared to the long hours we put in when Parliament is in session. It is also the time of year when I get to take my friends’ kids fishing as well as supporting some of the excellent angling participation projects that are now up and running in my part of the Thames Valley.

Thanks to the support of the Environment Agency, local councils and private sector sponsors we now have Angling Development Officers working in Reading, Swindon, and Oxford. I joined the newly appointed Reading officer - Danny Williams - on the banks of the Thames to help out with his school holiday programme. Unfortunately the usually prolific shoals of roach were proving hard to find but the Thames always throws up a nice perch to put a smile on the youngsters’ faces.

In August the Environment Agency organises a number of family fishing taster days where parents can bring along their kids to be introduced to angling under the guidance of a qualified coach. The local venue for this event is the beautiful Child Beale Park just west of Reading which has a lake, recently connected to the Thames, stuffed with roach, perch and skimmer bream. I suspect that this water is fast becoming a nursery area for the river species but wherever the fish come from they certainly provided guaranteed sport for the hundreds of youngsters who attended over the two day period.

Giving children a taste for angling is all very well, but our sport desperately needs people and organisations who will take budding young anglers under their wings and help them develop their skills. All too few clubs now have functioning junior sections with regular trips and competitions under adult supervision. This is an area which I trust that the new unified governing body for angling will prioritise. There is some excellent work taking place through the Angling Development Board and in some clubs but overall provision for juniors is far too patchy for the long-term future of angling.

Recent surveys have shown that considerably more young people would take up angling if they had someone to go with and show them the ropes. I owe my love of the sport to a wonderful gentleman named Eddie Batley who gave generously of his time to run the Englefield Green A.A junior angling section. Without Eddie who sadly passed away before I could thank him properly for making me an angler, I’m not sure that I and scores of other youngsters in the 1960s would have continued our love affair with the sport.

This summer I enjoyed two great days out with youngsters who are as keen as I was at their age but who lack someone to take them and show them the tricks of our trade. Young Rupert Stacy has caught bream, carp, tench, roach and perch both by himself and under my watchful eye but had never landed a barbel. Rupert’s dream finally came true this year with a lovely 5lbs plus fish from a snaggy swim on the river Kennet. I also enjoyed a great session with Liam McDevitt helping him to catch carp and crucians on a pole and on floating dog biscuits. The smiles on their faces tell me that there is every chance that these two youngsters are now hooked for life!

First Published in ‘Tackle and Guns’ as Commons Man