The mascot of Skegness is more than 100 years old, and we reckon it’s about time that the Jolly Fisherman went into retirement.
The Jolly Fisherman is thought to have influenced the success of Skegness as a holiday destination over the years, but we’re calling on Mayor Carl Macey to embrace an animal-friendly replaicement. PETA have sent an alternative tongue-in-cheek sign to him reading, “Skegness: a Happy PLAICE”. 
The current Jolly Fisherman conveys the message that the mascot’s violent occupation is acceptable, but catching animals in nets and suffocating them or impaling them in the face with hooks is never OK. Fish are complex, sensitive animals who feel pain like the rest of us. Biologists have found that fish develop relationships with each other and grieve when their friends die. Dr Sylvia Earle, one of the world’s leading marine biologists, has said, “I wouldn’t deliberately eat a grouper any more than I’d eat a cocker spaniel”.
As a little encouragement, we’re offering the local school district £1,000 worth of VBites Fish-Free Fish Fingers if Skegness agrees to adopt the Happy Plaice as its new mascot. We just really hope ofishal Mayor Carl Macey has had some time to mullet over this oppor-tuna-ty and will give fish their plaice in the sun.
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