RSPB welcomes Government move that keeps ban on sandeel fishing
The RSPB has welcomed Government action to comply with an EU tribunal’s ruling over a sandeel fishing ban – a move which means the restrictions will remain in the North Sea.
Sandeels are a key food source for many seabirds, including the colonies of gannets, puffins, razorbills and other species at the RSPB Bempton Cliffs nature reserve on the Yorkshire coast.
Safeguarding sandeel stocks is a key part of the jigsaw that will help set the region’s puffins, kittiwakes and the wider marine environment on the path to recovery.
The Government’s actions relate an EU tribunal ruling following the decisions taken in March 2024 by the UK and Scottish Governments to close the North Sea waters to sandeel fishing.
They said the action were taken to protect vulnerable seabird populations and support the wider marine environment.
However, the original tribunal had identified a procedural error in the decision to close English waters.
The Government will now undertake a process ‘in good faith to bring the UK into compliance’.
Unless this is challenged by the EU, the closure of the fisheries will be permanent.
A statement from the Government said: “The UK has written to the EU to confirm the measures we have taken to comply with the sandeel arbitration tribunal’s ruling.
"The tribunal’s report identified a procedural shortcoming in the process for deciding to close English waters to sandeel fishing.
"They did not find fault with UK objectives or the scientific basis for implementing the measures. The UK has now completed a new decision-making process based on updated advice and evidence, which takes into account all the requirements set out in the tribunal’s report.
“Following this new decision-making process, we have determined that the closure of sandeel fishing in English waters of the North Sea remains necessary to achieve our objective of improving the protection and recovery of the marine ecosystem, as well as the Good Environmental Status (GES) of UK waters.
"We consider that this new decision-making process resolves the failings identified by the tribunal, and brings us into compliance with our TCA obligations. The closures will therefore remain in place.”
Kirsten Carter, head of UK marine policy at the RSPB, said: “Putting a full stop to industrial sandeel fishing is the single most important measure we can take to support the UK’s fragile seabird populations.
"Now the UK Government has brought the closure in English waters of the North Sea into compliance with the tribunal’s ruling, we hope this will mean a brighter future for Puffins, Kittiwakes and many other species.
“At the moment though the UK’s seas and seabirds remain in a state of crisis. Gaps in the network of protected marine areas need to be plugged by creating safe feeding areas for seabirds at sea and essential offshore wind infrastructure sited away from the most important places for nature. Both are critical next steps if we’re to successfully restore our degraded marine environment.”
Danish fishermen, who have 96 per cent of the EU’s sand eel quota in the North Sea, had claimed the ban is "discriminatory" as it only really affects EU fishermen. In 2023, Danish fishers were awarded a quota of 180,000 tonnes of the fish which are turned into fish oil and meal to feed farmed fish and livestock like pigs.