A gangmaster has been found guilty of using workers to gather shellfish without a licence after he was found using five migrant workers, none of whom had the required permit to gather cockles on the sands at Morecambe Bay.

Four of the men were rescued by the Morecambe lifeboat five miles from the Morecambe Bay shore in rising tides, while the other man made off across the sands on an all-terrain vehicle.

Harold Benson, of 29 Market Street, Flookborough, Cumbria, pleaded guilty to contravening the Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004 at Preston Crown Court on 1 September 2009.

The Act was made law following the Morecambe Bay tragedy in 2004, when the actions of an illegal gangmaster led to 23 Chinese cockle pickers being cut off and drowning in the rising tidal water.

Benson’s prosecution followed an incident on the 13 September 2007 where he was spotted organising men on the Yeoman Wharf cockle beds south of Flookborough. After being confronted by sea fisheries officers, Benson sent a distress call to the Liverpool Coast Guard reporting the men were in danger from the rising tide, which led to the Morecambe lifeboat being sent to rescue them.

Benson, who had previously been warned that he would need a licence to operate as a gangmaster had originally pleaded not guilty, initially claimed when interviewed was that the men were nothing to do with him and had “messed about with some rakes” on the sands five miles from shore.

A GLA investigation found he had organised the men and provided them with equipment and accommodation at the Truckhaven Lorry Park, north of Carnforth, as well as taking them out onto the bay.

Benson was fined £600 and ordered to pay £4,000 in costs. Failure to pay within three months will result in his imprisonment.

Paul Whitehouse, chairman of the Gangmasters Licensing Authority, says:“The teamwork demonstrated in this case between the local Sea fisheries committee and ourselves should act as a warning to anyone else looking to break the rules.

“Morecambe Bay is a notoriously dangerous area, which has seen tragedy in the past. Any cockling must be done in a professional manner with the safety of those involved paramount at all times.”