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鈥檚 puffins, kittiwakes and the wider marine environment on the path to recovery. The Government鈥檚 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 鈥榠n good faith to bring the UK into compliance鈥. Unless this is challenged by the EU, the closure of the fisheries will be permanent. A statement from the Government said: 鈥淭he UK has written to the EU to confirm the measures we have taken to comply with the sandeel arbitration tribunal鈥檚 ruling. “The tribunal鈥檚 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鈥檚 report. 鈥淔ollowing 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.鈥 Kirsten Carter, head of UK marine policy at the RSPB, said: 鈥淧utting a full stop to industrial sandeel fishing is the single most important measure we can take to support the UK鈥檚 fragile seabird populations. “Now the UK Government has brought the closure in English waters of the North Sea into compliance with the tribunal鈥檚 ruling, we hope this will mean a brighter future for Puffins, Kittiwakes and many other species. 鈥淎t the moment though the UK鈥檚 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鈥檙e to successfully restore our degraded marine environment.鈥 Danish fishermen, who have 96 per cent of the EU鈥檚 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.