I believe they are spreading quite well in England and Wales, but gradually, even making it into cities such as Manchester.
Philip Ware and the Otter trust in East Anglia did brilliant work 20 odd years ago to help them spread from only a couple of good otter places, I think Suffolk/Norfolk and West Country, even though Scotland had and has a strong seaside/island population.
Anglers are often very clued up on wildlife, they need to be to fish successfully - its not fair to tar them all with the same brush, although I understand the deep annoyance! You can learn a lot from talking to a knowledgable angler.
We cant let disaster strike Otters again though.
Cheers
Ken