The sandeel fishery in English waters of the North Sea is to remain closed, the UK Government has confirmed.
The original decision, made in March 2024, was taken to an arbitration tribunal by the EU. In May, the tribunal identified a procedural error in the UK’s Government’s decision to close the English fishery. The Scottish Government’s decision to close Scottish waters to sandeel fishing was fully upheld.
The UK Government has now written to the EU to confirm the measures taken to comply with the tribunal’s ruling, including full consideration of the EU’s rights and interests during the adjustment period.
It said: “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 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.”
The Danish industry, which claims the UK sandeel ban is costing it £40m a year, has disputed the UK’s interpretation of the ruling. Kenn Skau Fischer, CEO of the Danish FPO, said: “We expect the EU Commission and the Danish government to
react seriously to the fact that the UK does not want to respect the arbitration’s assessment of the lack of proportionality in the closure of Dogger Bank for sandeel fishing.”
This story was taken from the latest issue of Fishing News. For more up-to-date and in-depth reports on the UK and Irish commercial fishing sector, subscribe to Fishing News here or buy the latest single issue for just £3.50 here.
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