No,not the barbel police Philip,in the days on the barbel boom on the Severn,I saw hundreds of barbel over the years dead,floating down in the flow,this is over several years,but you must remember,I live 140 miles away and only fished maybe 14 days a year on the river,when you fish rivers like the Gt.Ouse,Ivel,Thames,D.Stour,H.Avon and many others with smaller populations one fish dying occasionally through mistreatment has an effect on the species biomass.To be honest I could not give a flying f### what the French do,our rivers are under far more angling pressure than theirs.
Just to add,the chances if a barbel reviving whilst floating off,gasping is virtually nil,now,I don't know how Maj barbel are in the Severn these days,but there is definitely less,if a mile long stretch loses ten fish per annum for any reason there is an effect,if we add to that by the bad returning of fish it could well lead to disastrous consequences for the species..