Lammy refers himself to environment watchdog over rod licence ‘error’

David Lammy has referred himself to the environment watchdog because he did not have a rod licence to go fishing with JD Vance.

The Foreign Secretary failed to catch any fish when he hosted the US vice president at his grace-and-favour retreat at Chevening House, Kent.

Anglers in England and Wales aged 13 or over must have a rod licence to fish for freshwater species, such as carp, according to the Environment Agency.

Administrative oversight

“The Foreign Secretary has written to the Environment Agency over an administrative oversight that meant the appropriate licences had not been acquired for fishing on a private lake as part of a diplomatic engagement at Chevening House last week,” a Foreign Office spokesperson said.

“As soon as the Foreign Secretary was made aware of the administrative error, he successfully purchased the relevant rod fishing licences.

“He also wrote to the Environment Agency notifying them of the error, demonstrating how it would be rectified, and thanking them for their work protecting Britain’s fisheries.”

‘Special relationship’

During their visit, Mr Vance described Mr Lammy as a “good friend” and a “very, very gracious host”.

The vice president added: “Unfortunately, the one strain on the special relationship is that all of my kids caught fish, but the Foreign Secretary did not.”

All fish that were caught were returned to the private lake, the PA news agency understands.

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “Everyone who goes fishing needs a licence to help improve our rivers, lakes and the sport anglers love.

“We understand the relevant licences have been purchased.”

Mr Vance visited Chevening while on holiday in the Cotswolds with his family.