Lammy faces potential fine after fishing with US vice-president without licence

The pair were photographed last week holding fishing rods in the grounds of Chevening House, the grace-and-favour country estate traditionally used by foreign secretaries, where Mr Vance was staying with his family as part of a UK visit.

Both men confirmed they had been fishing for carp with their children but said neither of the adults managed to catch anything. “Unfortunately, the one strain on the special relationship is that all of my kids caught fish, but the foreign secretary did not,” Mr Vance said at the start of their meeting.

Under rules in England and Wales, anyone aged over 13 must have a rod licence to fish – including on private land. It is understood that neither Mr Lammy nor Mr Vance held a licence at the time.

Fishing without a licence can result in a fine of up to £2,500 issued by the Environment Agency. Mr Lammy has since purchased a rod licence retrospectively and has notified the agency of the breach.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “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.

“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.”

Mr Vance, who is continuing his family holiday in the Cotswolds, had visited Mr Lammy at Chevening as part of a series of diplomatic engagements. All fish caught by the group were returned to the water afterwards.

A Labour source said: “There’s nothing fishy to see here. The foreign secretary isn’t much of a fisherman but he landed a big diplomatic catch getting the vice-president to stay for the weekend at Chevening.

“As soon as he learnt of the administrative error he got the relevant licences and notified the Environment Agency to avoid getting caught up.”

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.”