Thanks to an observant individual 1,000 fish were saved from suffocation ("Fish saved after angler raises alarm," Mercury, July 16).

However, as anglers catch fish, I am wondering whether the action to save them was as altruistic as first appears. To confuse the issue further, I read that the rescue carried out by Fisheries Officers "is funded by money from the sale of rod licences".

Saving fishes from suffocation is an obvious example of concern for animal welfare; piercing their mouths with metal hooks surely isn't.

Elizabeth Allison, Aylestone.